Save You
by heartsmash
Summary: Erin Lindsay and Kelly Severide deal with the devastating effects of the warehouse fire in Chicago Fire "Real Never Waits (2.22)" and those events that follow. A Linseride re-telling of the Chicago Fire Season 3 and Chicago P.D. Season 2. Named for "Save You" by Matthew Perryman Jones.
1. Chapter 1

**Author's Notes:** Seeing as how I recently caught up on both Chicago Fire and Chicago P.D., I've been itching to write a different version of the current seasons. What if the writers had continued the obvious connection and chemistry between Kelly Severide and Erin Lindsay into the current seasons? Several major plot points will remain the same however it will be with a Linseride outlook.

I've looked this over multiple times so although I'm hoping for no errors, they probably still exist. And I love feedback so tell me what you think!

_Chapter One_

Erin Lindsay glanced at her watch and sighed. She was never finishing this shift if she didn't get her paperwork completed so that these two cases that the team had finished were considered off their docket. Having the next day off didn't help her feel any less restless about finishing off the paperwork that sat on her desk.

"Shit," Antonio Dawson muttered from the desk next to her and quickly hopped up, grabbing his jacket off the back of her chair.

"Antonio? What's up?" she asked which stopped her teammate in his tracks.

"I've got to head over to Chicago Med. Leslie Shay was just pronounced dead from a call that 51 was out on. Boden just sent me a text."

Erin's heart nearly stopped beating in her chest at what Antonio had just said to her. Her time as a police officer for the city of Chicago had introduced her to the many different firehouses that existed within the city. But none of them had grown on her as much as 51. From the moment that she had stepped inside during the blackout, she could see that they were a tried and true family to one another.

That had also been the night when she had first met Kelly Severide. She had gone to firehouse because one of her informants had told her that Vincent Keeler was looking to get revenge on a firefighter that had humiliated him. Never in a million years did she think that weeks later she would be involved with the lieutenant. But she couldn't deny that there had been an instant attraction between them that had developed into the two of them seeing a lot more of each other. Erin had seen him while his sister had been kidnapped and after the bombing at Chicago Med but she knew that this would gut him. She couldn't think of anywhere else that she needed to be other than by his side.

"I'm going with you," she said, grabbing her own coat to follow him out to the unmarked Crown Victoria that he drove.

After what felt like an impossibly long drive to Chicago Med, Erin followed Antonio into the emergency room and were overcome with the sight before them. All the members of firehouse 51 was camped out in the waiting room, reeling from the news of Shay's passing. But none were so devastated as Gabriela Dawson and Kelly Severide. Gabby sat on a couch wrapped in the arms of her boyfriend, Matthew Casey, as she sobbed. Antonio went right over to them to console his sister. Erin's eyes wildly searched the waiting room for Severide and found him sitting on the floor near doors marked No Admittance.

He was crying uncontrollably, rocking back and forth while still dressed in full gear. He hadn't even taken the time to remove his helmet. Erin gave Hermann and Boden a concerned glance before getting onto the floor next to him. She touched his shoulder gently but that didn't stop him from flinching.

"Erin?" he asked, looking up at her disoriented. His tears had made track marks in the black soot that coated his face.

"I'm here Kelly," she told him and gently removed his helmet. "I'm here and I'm so sorry."

"Shay's dead," he told her and she nodded her understanding. "I couldn't save her."

"Kelly, I know that you did everything that you possibly could. Shay knows that too."

He shook his head in disagreement and buried his face into his knees. Erin knew that he needed to get out of the hospital, get cleaned up and crash for a bit. The day's events had done a number of him, let alone everyone from the firehouse. She closed her eyes and summoned all the strength that she could because she knew that he was going to need her. They had only been seeing each other for a few weeks but she knew his father would be little to no help, his sister was now in New York and his best friend was now gone. His next closest friend was Casey and he had his hands full with Gabby. It was on her to care for him. Erin stood up and pulled out her phone and dialed quickly.

"Ruzek, I need a huge favor," she said into the phone. "It's important."

The newest member of Intelligence agreed to her requests and that allowed her to focus on Kelly. She got back down onto the floor and touched his face gently.

"Let's get you out of here."

* * *

He had put up a little bit of a fight about leaving the hospital but she, Casey and Boden had tripled teamed him into getting into the chief's car and going with Erin to her apartment. Kelly seemed completely out of it as they drove across town. Chief Boden pulled to the curb and Erin thanked him and got out, coaxing Kelly to follow her.

Ruzek was waiting outside of her building and had a bag just as she had asked.

"Did the best I could seeing as I've only seen the guy once."

"I'm sure whatever you got is fine. It's just for the night."

"Maybe it's time for you to give him a drawer Lindsay?"

Erin shot him a withering look and grabbed the bag out of his hand. "Thank you Ruzek. I'll see you at work."

Wrapping her arm around Kelly's torso, she guided his drained body into her apartment building and into the elevator. It didn't take long to get to the door of her apartment. She led him inside. He looked down at her, his eyes still red from the emotion he had shown in the emergency room, his face still coated with the ash from the explosion and fire that had killed Shay.

"Kelly, you should get washed up. I've got some clothes for you," she told him, lifting the bag to prove her point, "You can stay here tonight. We'll regroup in the morning."

"I don't know how to do this."

Erin nodded, understanding what he meant by that statement. Shay had always been his guidepost, his North Star. Now, she was gone and he was reeling. She intertwined her fingers with his and gave his hand squeeze of support.

"I'm here with you. I'm not going anywhere. Okay?"

He nodded and she kissed his knuckles before leading him to her bathroom. She closed the drain and turned on the warm water. The chief had taken Kelly's helmet and jacket, but he still had on the rest of his gear. She got him to sit on the edge of the tub so that she could take off his boots. She gingerly pushed down the suspenders and unhooked his turnout pants. She got those things off of him. Erin poured some bubble bath into the water, not caring if it was girly. She wanted him to rest considering what he had experienced that day. Grief was never easy but she didn't want him to think he was going through this alone.

"I'll let you do the rest. I'm going to get you something to drink and I'll be back in."

She shut the door to the bathroom and went into her bedroom. Sitting on the edge of her bed, Erin secured her weapon in the biometric safe next to her bed, putting her credentials away as well. Glancing out the window, she looked out onto the Chicago skyline and wondered how a city seemingly so pretty from this perspective could see and do such evil things. She had seen Kelly upset before – his sister had been kidnapped earlier in the year and he had had a tough call at a boarding school recently. But she had never seen him as shell-shocked as she did now.

She pulled off her own boots and put them into her closet, letting the comfort of going barefoot soothe her nerves marginally. Erin went to her kitchen and poured some bourbon into two lowball glasses. It would help the two of them to get some sleep and also dull some of the heartache that he felt.

Erin went back into the bathroom and found him sitting in the tub, staring off into space. He only looked at her when she took a seat on the edge of the tub.

"Drink this," she instructed and handed him a glass. She noted his shaking hand and her heart broke. Rather than address it, she took a sip from her own glass.

She put her glass to the side and grabbed the washcloth, running it under the warm water before turning the faucet off again. Erin tenderly touched his chin, forcing him to look at her and wiped the ash off his handsome face. She rinsed the cloth and gently wiped his chest and arms, hoping that what she could offer him was enough to console him. When she deposited the washcloth on the edge of the tub next to the faucet, she wasn't expecting Kelly to grab her hand place a kiss on her palm.

"Thanks," he said simply and she knew that he was struggling for what else to say.

"Right well, I'm going to leave some towels and the clothes that Ruzek dropped off. I'll lock up?"

He nodded and she moved to leave him alone again. She turned off extraneous lights as she went through the apartment and checked to make sure that the door was secured. Erin went into her bedroom and stripped off her jeans, shirt and bra before pulling on the oversized tee shirt that she normally slept in. She heard the bathroom door open and she moved to the threshold to check on him. He was shirtless and barefooted, his hair tousled from his hands running through it frustrated. Black sweats clung to the lowest point of his hips, underlining his muscular torso. He was bruised on his ribs and up on his shoulder. She assumed it was another result of the fire they had been in earlier.

"Come here," she said

He went to her and she hugged him fiercely despite the height difference.

"It's going to be okay Kelly," she told him gently. "I can't tell you how sorry I am that you have to go through this. Shay is irreplaceable." There was nothing more that she could say to him at this point. Things were going to be tough for him as he moved through the grieving process. She could feel him nod at her statement. "Let's try to get some sleep?" she asked and he led her into the bedroom.

She took her regular side of the bed and he moved around to the other, getting under the covers. Erin curled into his side, her leg thrown over his, her arm draped over his stomach. He squeezed her gently, pressing his lips to her forehead.

She was so glad that he was still there with her.

* * *

The next morning Erin woke up and found herself alone in bed. The side that Kelly had slept in the night before was long cold. She stretched and got up, her bare feet padding on the hardwood as she looked for Kelly. She found him out on the miniature balcony that her apartment boasted. He looked deep in thought and she didn't want to startle him. She knocked on the doorjamb and he turned to look at her.

"How do you take your coffee?" she asked softly. Erin didn't think she'd ever get over how attractive his blue eyes were. So expressive though sometimes the man behind them were so reticent.

"Just milk," he responded and she nodded. She wasn't going to pressure him into talking. She trusted that when he was ready he would come to her.

When the coffee had just finished brewing he came inside and sat at the island in her kitchen. She fixed him a cup and passed it to him.

"It doesn't feel real. I keep playing everything over in my mind and I can't make sense of how she's actually gone.

Erin bit her bottom lip, knowing exactly what he meant by his statement. All too well.

"Before I met you, I wasn't the only girl on Intelligence." Kelly looked surprised to hear that but she continued with her story. "Jules Willhite was on the team as well, she was Antonio's partner. She…got shot by this Colombian drug lord last year. I rode to the hospital with her."

Erin picked at the cuticle on her thumb but finished telling him her own experience. "Jules didn't make it. I notified her family and I remember the funeral but despite doing all that and knowing that she's gone, I sometimes expect her to breeze into the office and talk about going to grab a drink after shift." She thought for a minute. "I sorry that she never got to meet you. She always wanted to set me up with someone but I told her I would find someone in my own time."

She rounded the counter and wound her arms around his neck and kissed his cheek. "I'm home with you today so we can just stay here and order food, watch whatever you want, do whatever you want."

He nodded his understanding and she moved to go take a shower. But Kelly grabbed her by the hand and pulled her back to him before she moved to far away. Her surprise continued when he pushed a lock of hair behind her ear and tenderly kissed her.

"I wish I could have met her too."

* * *

They had been the picture of quiet until the afternoon when a knock came on her door. She extricated herself from the couch where Kelly was peacefully napping and went to the door. Through the peephole she saw Christopher Herrman waiting on the other side, a duffel bag on his shoulder. She wasn't sure if Kelly was up to visitors but she opened up anyways.

"Hi Christopher," Erin greeted and gave him hug.

"Hey Detective Lindsay, how's our boy?"

"He's confused obviously and hurting. But I think with time and closure, he'll get there."

Where there was she wasn't sure. But like hell was she going to abandon him as he went there.

"Understandable. I went over to the station this morning, got his keys and grabbed some of his stuff from his apartment. I figured he was no where ready to go there and I wasn't sure what the plan was for the moment."

"That's great. One of my team members got him a pair of clothes for last night but I honestly didn't give it much thought beyond that." She took the duffle that he handed off to her and she walked him inside. She put the bag on one of the stools and led Christopher into the living room.

Erin crouched down and gently ran a hand over Kelly's face. He stirred from sleep and she smiled at him.

"You've got a visitor fella."

Severide got up off the couch and gave his friend a hug.

"All right, put a shirt on. I don't need to see your impossibly chiseled physique and feel bad about mine."

Kelly cracked a smile and Erin knew that she could leave the two of them for a bit.

"I'm going to go get some groceries. Call me if you need me."

Erin glanced at Christopher and the unspoken message that traveled between the two of them noted that he wouldn't leave Kelly alone until she returned.

It didn't take her long to get what she needed and she came back from the store to find Kelly and Christopher each drinking a beer and reminiscing about Shay. Erin put the groceries away and moved to the sit on the arm of the couch next to Kelly. He put his arm around her waist and she bent down to kiss his forehead.

"Did you want to stay for dinner Chris?" Erin asked and he shook his head.

"Cindy's got her parents coming over tonight so I'll have to pass. But maybe the four of us could all have dinner sometime soon?"

"I'd like that," Kelly answered before she could.

"Great, we'll set something up down the road."

Erin walked him to the door and gave him a parting hug.

"You're right. He's hurting but I think he's got a shot with you around," Christopher said he walked backwards out the door. Erin closed the door behind him and caught Kelly's eye across the room. She shook her head and went into the kitchen to work on dinner.


	2. Chapter 2

**Author's Notes**: I'm so happy about the reception to this story! Thank you all for your kind words and the push to keep going.

This next chapter continues in 3.1 "Always," with my take on the funeral for Shay as well as how Erin would have responded to Kelly saying that he wasn't returning to 51. (There is some repeat of the ceremony that they did in 3.13 "Three Bells" because that ritual is _technically_ reserved for the funerals of firefighters or at least that's what my volunteer firefighter family members tell me. And a chart day is the equivalent of a vacation day for police as far as my research can find.) Also, it's never been mentioned from what I know but I'm going to assume that the pendant that Severide wears is St. Florian, the patron saint of firefighters.

This chapter is one of the reasons that this story is rated M, so you've been warned in advance.

* * *

_Chapter Two_

The funeral had been excruciating. With Erin not being a member of 51, she was forced to the back rows of the graveside service. So many of those that Shay had saved during her time as a paramedic had shown up to pay their respects, along with the rest of her Intelligence team members and Sergeant Platt. She had grabbed the first plain black dress that she had found in her closet and paired it oversized sunglasses to hide her red rimmed eyes.

The service for Leslie Shay had been beautiful, much like the day that she was buried on. The bagpipes playing Amazing Grace had caused goose bumps to fly over her skin. The pastor spoke not of her death but of her everlasting life in the Kingdom of Heaven.

"In the past, as firefighters began their tour of duty, it was the bell that signaled the beginning of that day's shift. Throughout each day and night, the alarm was sounded by a bell, which summoned these brave souls to fight fires and to place their lives on the line for the good of their fellow man. And when the fire was out and the call had come to an end, it was the bell that signaled to all the completion of that service. When a firefighter had died in the line of duty, paying the ultimate sacrifice, it was the mournful toll of the bell that solemnly announced a comrade's passing," the fire commissioner recited to the assembled crowd.

After he finished, the fire bell was rung three times in three separate sets. She tried to will Kelly strength from afar but she knew what the day was doing to him. Over the past few days, she had been able to shelter him from the outside world in her apartment but today had once again torn at the still fresh wound of losing Shay.

The coffin was lowered into the ground and Chief Boden made the announcement that all were welcome back at the firehouse for a continued gathering in Shay's memory. Erin knew that Kelly needed to be there with his family and Hank offered to drive the two of them over. Her nerves were shot so she was thankful to not be behind the wheel of a car.

"I'll see you guys over there," Antonio told his sergeant and Erin before going to find his sister.

Hank told her that he would meet them at the car, which gave her some semblance of privacy with Kelly. Erin approached where he stood slowly, seeing as how Kelly hadn't yet left the gravesite. She touched his arm gently to get his attention and she couldn't lie that the sadness in his eyes twisted her gut.

"You ready to get going? Hank is going to drive us over to 51."

He nodded and followed her silently. Kelly removed the white lieutenant's hat that was part of his class A uniform and got into the back of the black SUV. Erin followed suit, wanting the physical closeness that she could give him to combat with the loneliness that she knew he was feeling. She really didn't care if Hank felt like he was driving Miss Daisy, but she was pretty sure that he wouldn't make a wisecrack on today of all days.

The black and purple bunting was hung outside the firehouse to signify the loss of one of their own. Voight parked the car and the three of them walked into the house, the somber cloud following everyone that had congregated there. Shay's family had opted to have the post funeral gathering at 51, where Shay had spent so much of her last few years. Tables had been set up and food brought in. But no one seemed to care much for the food rather focusing on the booze to numb away the day's events.

Kelly went to go pay his respects to Shay's parents and sister, so Erin waited with Hank at a table that they had reserved for the Intelligence team.

"Be careful, Erin," Hank warned her, seeing that her eyes were focused on Kelly's every movement.

"What?" she questioned, no longer looking at Kelly but instead at the man that had taken her in when she was fifteen and desperately in need of help.

Hank sighed. "You've worked so hard to become this smart, confident and put together person. I just don't want to see you give all of yourself to a guy that's drowning. You'll lose yourself in the process."

Anger bubbled up in Erin's chest. For what he had been dealing with, Erin believed that Kelly was doing as well as could be expected. "He's not drowning. He's having a tough time. Not unlike you when Camille died."

"Just be…"

"Careful," she snapped, "I heard you." She eyed Hank closely. "Please don't play overprotective father figure and say anything to him. He needs time to grieve."

"All right, I won't."

Ruzek, Burgess, Olinsky and Atwater joined the two at the table, which meant that the conversation was officially over. Erin looked back over to where Kelly had last been standing and saw that he was no longer there. She frowned and stood up to look around the truck room for him.

"Anybody see Severide?" she asked the group and everyone looked around the area with no luck. "I'm going to go look for him."

There was no sign of him in the briefing room or the kitchen so Erin kept walking around. Eventually she made it to the officer's quarters and had better luck. He had discarded his hat, gloves and uniform jacket on the desk and was laying on the twin bed that the office boasted, an arm thrown over his eyes to block out the light. She shut the door to the office and locked it before drawing the blinds to the rest of the bunk area as well as the outside world.

Erin gingerly took a seat on the edge of the bed and Kelly lifted his arm a fraction of an inch to look at her.

"I couldn't be out there anymore," he told her. Erin knew what he meant. Between the cloying smell of funeral flowers and hearing people repeatedly tell Shay's family that they were sorry for their loss, it had started to wear on her as well.

"Do you want company or…" Erin asked timidly.

"Stay," he said, cutting her off and shifted over on the small bed.

Taking off her heels, she shifted her weight so that she was on the bed next to him. He turned towards the wall and she followed suit, doing her best to protect him with her small body.

* * *

"Frustrated much?" Halstead asked her as she kicked and punched the crap out of the kickboxing bag in the district's fitness room. Erin yanked the earbuds out of her ear and shook her head.

"Just pissed about yesterday's case. Seeing that little girl get grazed by a bullet thanks to our crossfire was not something I want to see again," she told him and sipped from her water bottle.

"You've seen a lot worse and yeah, it sucks that it happened that way but she's going to be fine. The ER nurse told us that."

"You're right," she agreed, "Thanks for the pep talk."

"Wasn't the only reason I came in here. Nadia told me that there's a Lieutenant Casey here to see you. He's waiting by Sergeant Platt."

She grabbed her phone from the window ledge where she had stored it during her workout, seeing that she had missed a call from the Truck 81 lieutenant. She pulled on a zip up hoodie over her tank and workout leggings and before heading to reception. Matt Casey stood in jeans and a gray T-shirt, arms crossed and looking tense.

"Hey, I was in the gym. Sorry I missed your call."

"Not a big deal. I was passing the district so I figured I would stop."

"Okay…" Erin responded and waited for the other shoe to drop.

"Have you talked to Severide lately?"

She frowned. After the funeral, she had helped Kelly to arrange movers for him to get his stuff out of his apartment so he didn't have to deal with it. All he had requested from Shay's things were two pictures of the two of them and the DVDs that they had made together. Kelly had decided to go spend some time at his cabin on Gray's Lake and had rented a storage unit to hold his belongings for the time being. He had come back to Chicago last week to take her to dinner and grab some stuff to go fishing, and just two days ago they had spent some time on the phone.

"Not yesterday but I know he said he needed to get his head on straight. He's been spending some time at the cabin, fishing and whatnot."

"Six weeks, Erin. He had enough furlough for five of them but now he's technically AWOL. I went to see him and he's talking about not coming back to 51 at all."

"What?" she asked skeptical. He hadn't sounded terrible on the phone, he had actually sounded serene. It had been a nice change until hearing this news from Matt.

"Yeah. He told me he's thinking of buying part of some guy's boat repair business in the town near there. It doesn't sound like the time has gotten his head on straight at all."

She cursed softly while debating what to do.

"Okay. I'm going to take a chart day tomorrow. I'll drive up there now and check on him. I can't believe this - we just talked the other day and he was actually starting to sound good."

"So good he's willing to move to the lake permanently?" Matt questioned cynically.

Erin knew that Matt and Kelly had had a rough patch in their friendship some time back but that the two lieutenants for firehouse 51 had mended fences and actually cared for the other's wellbeing.

"Sarcasm not needed but since you put it out there, I guess so."

Matt gave her shoulder a squeeze of support and told her to call if she needed anything.

* * *

Hank didn't bat an eyelash at her requesting off. She had been the model employee the last several weeks, throwing herself headfirst into cases. If he had had any concerns over her completely losing herself in Kelly, Erin had proved him wrong. Hank had simply told her to go and told her that Atwater would partner with Halstead on the next shift.

She went to her apartment, threw some clothes into a bag and on the way out of town, got a pizza from Giordano's for the two of them. With the afternoon traffic, she pulled onto the dirt road that led to the cabin just as the sun was beginning to turn into beautiful oranges and pinks. Erin parked her car near his Indian Motorcycle.

She found him picking up split logs and stacking them against the house. It was July so she knew the activity had been chosen to keep busy rather than out of necessity.

Erin gave herself a minute to drink in the sight of him. He was a sight for sore eyes in his black shirt and worn jeans. His muscles flexed as he lifted the last of the logs into his arms and added them to the top of the pile. She noted that he must have been working for some time, as he looked beat.

At the slamming of her car door, he turned to look at her as she moved across the dirt and grass to where he stood.

"Hey you," she said with a bright smile and was glad that he gave her a small one in return. "The place is beautiful Kelly."

The cabin was not that big but Erin could tell that Kelly took a lot of pride in its maintenance, as the outside logs looked like they had recently been stained and not a roof tile was out of place. If she knew Kelly, the inside was just as perfectly maintained as the outside.

"Thanks. What brings you up here?" he questioned, "Not that I'm not happy to see you."

"I'll be honest with you. Um, Matt had me really worried about you, particularly since you're AWOL at the moment."

He rolled his eyes at and bit out that he was fine.

"I'll be the judge of that one. Plus I haven't seen you in over a week. A girl's got needs ya know."

"Oh yeah?"

She grabbed the front of his shirt and pulled him down for a kiss. It only made her realize how much she had missed him and the normalcy that their relationship was missing since Shay's death. Truthfully, she couldn't imagine him living up by the lake over forty minutes away, alone in a cabin. She wanted him in Chicago where she could see him.

"I missed that," he admitted and her heart swelled.

"Right there with you," she responded, her hands splayed on his chest for balance.

He leaned down and gave her another quick kiss on the lips. "Let me help you with your bag."

"There's Giordano's too. Figured you'd be sick of fish by now." He laughed at her statement and the sound was like music to her ears. He shouldered her bag and she grabbed the pizza to follow him into the house.

Her suspicions about the interior of the cabin had been correct. Dark colored wood fixtures and furniture filled the different rooms of the cabin. A large, cozy looking couch sat in front of an unlit fireplace. It seemed like the perfect place to retreat to. No wonder he felt so safe here. She put the pizza box on the counter top, noting an official looking leather bound book that lay there but ignored it for the moment.

"Go grab a shower. I'll jump in after you."

He kissed the top of her head and went in the direction of the bedroom.

After their respective shower, the two of them camped out on the floor in front of the couch, eating pizza straight from the box accompanied by a microbrew that he had found in town earlier that week. She had stolen one of his t-shirts and a pair of his boxers much to wear to his amusement and he had pulled on a pair of sweatpants and a Squad 3 t-shirt.

They talked a bit about how his fishing had gone with his dad and she told him about some of the cases that the Intelligence team had been working on.

"You going to tell me what exactly Matt said that made you so worried?" he asked her as he reached for a third piece of deep dish.

"He told me that you were thinking about not going back to 51 and something about buying part of a boat repair business up here."

"That's the truth, so I'm glad he at least got that part right."

"That's not you Kelly. Even in the short time that I've known you, you're a doer. Sitting up here on a lake, not saving lives alongside your fire family is going to be like a slow death for you."

"That house is cursed Erin. Darden and Shay have died. Casey, Mills and Vargas have gotten hurt. Doesn't that say enough?"

"Okay but couldn't I counter that with a similar argument? Antonio has been shot, Willhite died. Why do I keep going back?"

"Glutton for punishment is my best guess."

She smacked him in the arm lightly. "Because I love what I do and I like feeling like I'm making a difference." Erin got to her feet quickly and grabbed the leather bound book that she had seen on the counter earlier. "Have you read this?" She flipped quickly to a random page. "Squad made an amazing save on Lake Michigan today. Woman and two children trapped in car underwater." She went forward another few pages. "House responded to overturned school bus. 8 children and driver were transported to the hospital." Erin closed the book and looked at him proudly. "That's just two calls Kelly, among countless more. In two calls, you helped save 12 people. That's incredible work. How can you give that up?"

It took him a minute to process everything that she had to say but soon he realized that she was right. "I guess I can't." He shook his head with a half smile. "How'd I find a girl like you?"

Neither of them wanted to drag up bad memories but the two of them knew how they had gotten so close.

She scooted closer to him. "Does this mean that 51 and I get to have you back in Chicago sooner rather than later?"

"I think that it does."

"Well if that's the case, I better keep you to myself while I have the chance," she told him and moved to straddle his lap. She pressed her lips to his and ran a hand over his cheek tenderly.

"You'd better," he responded with a smirk that read challenge.

His hand slid under the t-shirt that she wore and cupped her breast, his deft fingers rolling and tugging at her nipple, igniting her body. The other gripped her hip possessively.

"Kelly," she said breathlessly.

He pulled the t-shirt over her head and ran his hands down her back, which drove her crazy with want. Kelly tipped her chin up to kiss her again before nuzzling into her neck, sucking at the sensitive skin there. He was already aroused as she can clearly feel him through his sweatpants. It'd been so long since they'd been together like this that she might go crazy if he wasn't inside her in the next few minutes – foreplay be damned.

But obviously, he had other plans. He moved his arm to arch her back and lift her breast to his mouth. His mouth nipping and sucking on her sensitive flesh makes her moan.

"So beautiful," he murmured against her chest and turned his attention to the other, which hadn't been completely ignored thanks to his talented hands.

When he was done worshipping her chest, she cupped his face with both her hands and gently kissed his mouth.

"Lieutenant, if you don't get me to the bedroom this instant, we're going to have problems."

She got up from straddling him and held out her hand to help him up but he gracefully got to his feet without her help. With no warning, threw her over his shoulder and headed in the direction of the cabin's bedroom.

Erin shrieked happily and begged to be put down but soon enough he dropped her on the mattress of the bedroom's queen bed. Kelly stripped off his shirt and she hardly had time to admire his bare chest before he crawled over her prone form.

"Off," she told him impatiently and pushed at the waistband of his sweatpants. Dropping a kiss on her forehead, he stood to remove his sweatpants and didn't hesitate to also slide the boxers that she had stolen from him off her.

He skimmed his hands over the soft skin of her thighs making her gasp before he laid next to her. Skin to skin completely, she kissed him again needing to feel as much of him as she could in that moment. Erin felt like she has been kissing him forever. It's strange how comfortable she felt around him and how right the two of them fit.

"Tell me what you want, baby," he instructed, brushing a lock of her hair off her face.

Erin closed her eyes and tipped her head back. As much as she loved that he wanted to continue to please her and as romantic as she thinks that is, at this point she's pretty easy to please.

"I want you…just you," she whispered, reaching down to stroke him.

Kelly somehow managed to get his hand into his bedside table to grab a condom. And with extreme skill, he managed to kiss her senseless all the while slipping the condom on with one hand. She's not entirely sure how he does it but she thinks it just about the hottest thing on the planet. When he spreads her thighs apart with his hands and leans over her, the previous ranking shifted as the sight of him made her skin hum with anticipation.

Erin leaned up to kiss him again and his hand grabbed her hip as he entered her. She couldn't help but let out this noise from the back of her throat because the feeling of him inside her was completely delicious. He remained still for a moment, giving her a minute to adjust but she's not for waiting. Her right hand lightly grabbed onto the St. Florian pendant that hung around his next and lifted her hips to press him closer, her left hand at the small of his back to urge him on.

"God," he breathed out as he began a rhythm, "You're perfect."

"Ditto," she breathed out, trailing her lips along his jaw and towards his ear.

He hitched one of her legs a little higher on his hip and it didn't take Erin long to match his rhythm, meeting him thrust for thrust, moaning as his pace quickened. Locking her legs around Kelly's waist, she knew she was closer than she thought.

"So close Kelly…" she breathed out.

He repeats the same action a few times, until she's curling her fingers around his bicep and calling out his name. Kelly let his head fall to her shoulder and he tumbled over the edge with her.

He collapsed on top of her, her legs still tight around him and her hands still on his skin. They were both tacky with sweat and when she kissed his neck, it was a mixture of sweat and something distinctly Kelly. Both breathing heavily, he tried to pull himself away from her but she tightened her grip on him and let her fingers run down his arms.

"Not yet," she murmured, "I like you here."

* * *

_Upcoming:_  
_The afterglow and much more_


	3. Chapter 3

**Author's Notes**: Sorry the delay everyone – between work and graduate school assignments, I've been lagging in writing area. But here is the next chapter. It takes place between the episodes of "Wow Me" and "Just Drive the Truck" for Chicago Fire and "Get My Cigarettes" for Chicago P.D.

One of my biggest areas of weakness is switching between tenses and I am sure I am doing it in this story so I apologize in advance.

I look forward to your feedback and let me know where you'd like to see this story go!

_Chapter Three_

The only light in the bedroom of the cabin was a small bedside table lamp. It pitched just enough light into the room for the couple to enjoy the stillness after what had just transpired. Erin lay wrapped in the blankets on her side, her head propped up on her hand, her other running gently through Kelly's hair. His blue eyes watched her every move and in that moment, she realized that this man had her wrapped around his finger. It had been so long since she had been in a relationship and yet she wasn't even sure that that is what he wanted. The thought made her smirk.

"What's so funny?" he asked her.

"Nothing. Just thinking about something stupid."

"Oh yeah?" he questioned, "What's that?"

She shook her head, refusing to tell. He grabbed her hand, rolled her underneath him and pinned her hands above her head so quickly that she didn't know what was happening.

"Ready to tell me now?"

"Are you ready to have a high school level conversation?" His nod told her that she should continue. "I feel so juvenile but I was just wondering what are we? I mean obviously we've been spending a lot of time together and I care about you a lot..."

He released her hands and rolled off her so that he was on his side looking down into her hazel eyes. "Erin…it's not stupid. I consider you my girlfriend. But that's only if you want the same thing."

She cupped his cheek and kissed him languidly. "Good answer."

* * *

Later that week, she got a text from Christopher just as she was coming off a shift that had been overwrought with paperwork, not enough action and the knowledge that her mom was back in town. She wasn't sure if the latter was going to wreak havoc in her currently settled life and she wasn't looking to find out. Being forced to meet the next sucker that planned on marrying her mother had been an unwelcome surprise and she had gotten the hell out of that diner as quickly as humanly possible.

The message had simply stated that she needed to come over to Molly's. Erin didn't hate the idea of a beer at this point in her day but she hadn't been prepared to find a chatty, over-served Kelly sitting at the bar and shouting about the need for the pretzel bowls to be constantly filled. Taking off her coat and hanging it on the wall, she caught Christopher's eye and sidled up to her boyfriend.

Erin knew from years off cleaning up after her mom, that his being over-served and extremely happy at the moment could result in an extreme mess if he wasn't cut off and she didn't get some water into his system. It also didn't bode well for his shift the next day as hangovers were never fun at their age.

"Erin!" he greeted happily when he saw that she had arrived.

"Hey you," she said and gave him a quick kiss. She could immediately tell that he had been into the hard stuff tonight.

"Hey Herrman, get my girl a beer would you?"

Christopher twisted the cap off a beer and put it in front Erin. She took a swig and noticed a pretty blonde sitting next to Kelly, looking like a fish out of water. Erin stood on the rungs of her stool and held out a hand to introduce herself to her. "I don't think we've met. Detective Erin Lindsay, Intelligence."

"And my girlfriend," Kelly chimed in. Erin shook her head with a chuckle.

"Sylvie Brett. I'm the new paramedic on 61, transferred from Indiana."

"How's it going so far?"

"It's an adjustment, Chicago is a lot busier than the small town that I trained in but I love it. Everyone is so great."

Kelly stared intently at Sylvie and Erin knew exactly what he was going to say before he said it. Christopher also seemed poised for implosion as well.

"Erin...doesn't she kind of look like...?"

Not wanting to make him upset but also not wanting to make Sylvie anymore uncomfortable, she agreed. Sylvie did resemble Shay and she was sure that it was trip for anyone in 51 if they took a quick glance at the new paramedic.

"How was your shift yesterday?" Erin asked him, resting her hand on his forearm. Before he could answer her Sylvie chimed in, describing a call with great enthusiasm.

"Oh man, Lieutenant Severide had this great save. A car with an empty boat trailer was on the edge of this cliff and it had this guy trapped and a girl was inside the car. I've never seen anything like it."

"It was nothing," he said humbly, the earlier cheerfulness beginning to wear off. "I'm just glad that we got Elena out safe and sound."

Erin took another sip from her beer before ordering some water for Kelly.

"Babe, drink some water so that we can get you home. I'm sure you don't want to feel like shit on your shift tomorrow." His eyes held such appreciation for her that she had to look away and blink away the traitorous tears that had gathered. When he took a dutiful sip, she kissed the corner of his mouth. "Don't think I wouldn't have used my cuffs on you if you didn't listen."

He laughed and quickly drained the water that from the glass.

"Let's get you to Casey and Dawson's so you can get some sleep."

Since returning to Chicago, Kelly had taken over the guest room at his fellow lieutenant's apartment that he shared with his fiancée. Erin was glad that the support system that he had around him was growing and that life was starting to normalize. But she couldn't like to herself about the drinking. It was definitely a concern and she wouldn't stand for it in the long run. Erin had worked too hard to distance herself from that life to be sucked back in.

He helped her into her jacket even though she was not the type of girl that demanded such action. They went out to her car and she drove them in the direction of Logan Square. The ride was quiet and she was sure that his mind had gone to Shay. It was more often than not the case. Erin pulled the car to the curb and was ready to say goodnight to him when he asked if she would stay the night.

"I'd have to leave pretty early to go home and change. But I'm okay with that if you are."

He thought about that about that for a moment before answering her.

"Maybe you should leave some of your stuff here."

Her mouth opened and closed like a fish out of water. She had not a clue on how to respond to that when part of her thought it was the liquor talking and another part of her thought that it was much too fast for them to do something that usually took couples months to do. But then again, they weren't exactly a normal couple were they?

"You're cute when you're flustered," he said and kissed her forehead before getting out of the car. Removing her own seatbelt, she followed him into the apartment building.

They went to the apartment that Matt and Gabby had moved into recently, finding the couple on the couch cuddling with glasses of wine. She gave them a silent wave and led Kelly into his room so that he didn't disturb them. When they were inside, she stripped down to her bra and panties before stealing a Squad t-shirt from his drawer.

"You like stealing my clothes don't you?" he questioned with a grin.

"I don't have anything to wear otherwise," she told him as she pulled the shirt over her head and put her arms through the appropriate holes.

"You could sleep naked," he commented, the grin now impish and making his eyes crinkle.

"Sleeping will not be what happens if I do that."

"Who's complaining about that one?"

"I'm sure you're not but we both have shifts tomorrow."

She unhooked her bra underneath the t-shirt before letting the cups fall and removed the straps before pulling the garment through the sleeve of her the shirt. Looking up, she saw that Kelly had been watching her intently throughout the entire process.

"That's hot."

"Down boy. That's a move from a little film called _Flashdance_."

She got into his bed and patted the spot next to her. He smiled at her and she couldn't help but think how much she had missed that when he had been so sad as of late. Stripping to his boxers, flipping off the light and getting into bed, she let him getting settled before she curled into his side and put her head on his chest.

In the dark, she felt like she could reveal the secret that was starting to feel like it was strangling her.

"My mom is back," she whispered.

Saying the words out loud meant it was real. Having seen her earlier at the diner before meeting up with Kelly, meant knowing that the woman that had given birth to her and ultimately treated her like crap was back in town. Hank was the only other one to know and letting the news out that Bunny was in Chicago felt like a weight off her chest.

"What? When did that happen?" he asked looking down at her.

"Nadia took a few calls from her yesterday. I had coffee with her before I came to Molly's tonight. She's on her millionth attempt at being sober."

He pulled her tighter to him and kissed her head. "You don't have to deal with this alone okay?"

She wiped at her eyes before the tears could fall. "Thanks," she responded quietly. "I'm just...she's getting married again and she wants me there. It's just a lot all at once."

"Erin, you've started to tell me about your past. Your dad was a piece of shit and your mom was not what you needed her to be. Don't feel obligated to suddenly drop everything at her request." He pressed on. "You've got me. You've got Hank and the rest of your team. It'd be great if your mom really has changed, but whether she has or hasn't, you're not going to let it break you. You're too strong for that."

Erin nodded and snuggled closer to him. She wanted to melt into him, leave behind the strong girl and let him shield her from her problems. But for the time being, sleep would have to do.

* * *

Kelly grimaced and shoved his phone away. He and Erin had had pans for dinner that evening and now she was stuck at the district on a case. He had went with a few of the guys from the house to Molly's to grab a beer and wait for the time that he was supposed to be meet her at the restaurant.

"Why the face Lieutenant?" Cruz asked as Otis set another beer in front of the driver on truck 81.

"Erin's stuck at work. We were going to have dinner. She's got some stuff going on, figured it would be nice to spend some one on one time."

Joe Cruz thought for a moment before contributing an idea. "Nothing's stopping you from being the white knight. Sure she can't meet you for dinner but why not bring some food over there, just to drop off to her and her team. It'll go over real good I'm sure."

If he could have kissed him without it being weird, he would have. Kelly slid off his stool and paid for the beer that he had had. Clapping his friend on the back, he thanked him. "Sometimes Cruz…you have the right idea."

Meanwhile at the 21st District, Erin posted another potential suspect's picture on the board as they discussed the bounty that was on Halstead's head. She felt weary. Having her partner's safety hang in the balance was not something that she wanted to make a regular occurrence.

"Severide, what's up man?" Antonio said and Erin almost commented on now funny it was that he'd joke like that but when she turned around she saw her boyfriend had walked onto the floor carrying a in a big box that had the Smokin' Woody's logo stamped on the side and emanated the smell of barbeque.

"I brought some food. Erin said you guys were stuck here and I wanted to make sure my girl got fed." She blushed at his comment and shook her head as she walked over to where he stood in the bullpen. "There's a bunch of stuff in here. Wasn't sure what you'd guys would want."

Hank slapped him on the back, which was probably the closest thing to a thank you that the team lead would give. Erin took Kelly by the hand and led him into the viewing room of one of the interrogation rooms for some privacy. She pushed up on her toes and wound her arms around his neck. He hugged her to him and she relished in the closeness.

"Someone has a bounty of $100 grand on Jay's head. He killed a suspect's brother last week. It's a giant mess." She looked up at him, "I so wanted to be a normal couple for once. Dinner out in a restaurant, going back to my place afterward."

"Someone's got to save the world," he told her, pushing a lock of wavy hair behind her ear. "And you're the girl to do it."

She swallowed the lump in her throat at his compliment. Part of her was so glad that he had never known the messed up girl with a rap sheet and multiple aliases. He only knew the girl that protected the city of Chicago and she was okay with that.

"On tomorrow?" Erin asked referring to his shift.

"Yeah, one on, two off."

"Well let's hope all this craziness with Jay is behind us so I can see you the day after tomorrow. Low key dinner at my place?"

"Sounds great."

* * *

Murphy's Law told Erin Lindsay that the best-laid plans almost always resulted in disaster. It had come over dispatch that police presence was needed at the site of a motor vehicle accident between Firehouse 51 and 105, with one truck overturned. She hadn't given it a second thought and run out the door of the district with Sergeant Platt shouting at her for her to call with information on Mouch as soon as she had any. She had simply told her team that she had to go without any additional detail.

She rushed through the halls of Chicago Med and got to a nurse's station to ask for information when she spotted Otis, a few cuts on his face and still in his turnout coat.

"Otis!" she yelled and dodged a gurney to reach him. "What the hell happened?"

"We were called to the scene of the fire along with 105. We took different routes and then out of nowhere, bam! 81 got hit hard."

Relief flooded her body to hear that it wasn't Squad 3 that had been involved in the accident. Erin Lindsay rarely displayed a great deal of emotion but the relief she felt in that moment resulted in tears slipping from her eyes and sob that she didn't know that she had been stifling, to break free. Her emotions had been all over the map in the past week with the safety of her partner and her boyfriend in question only days apart. They did not teach you how to deal with that at the academy.

"It's okay," Otis told her, "Mouch got it the worst but everyone is going to be okay from 51. 105 ended up not being as lucky."

That information did not make her feel any better and she had trouble catching her breath amongst her tears. Otis got her into a chair and tried to calm her down but it was to no avail. He signaled Casey who came over. The truck lieutenant knelt in front of her.

"What's going on?" Casey asked her and she grabbed at her chest to signal to him that she couldn't breathe very well. "Can I get some O2 over here?" the lieutenant asked a nurse that was walking by and she nodded. The nurse brought over an oxygen canister attached to a mask, which they got onto Erin to help her regulate her breathing.

"Does she have a history of panic attacks?" the nurse asked Casey.

"Not sure," Casey answered. Erin held the mask to her face and took another trembling breath. Grabbing his radio, he contacted the lieutenant of Rescue Squad 3. "Severide, report to room 418."

It took him a minute but Kelly came to the area where they had all congregated. Seeing Erin sitting in the chair with the mask on her face, he immediately knelt down in front of her in concern. She leaned forward and wrapped her free arm around him, the other still holding her mask. The others dispersed letting the couple of them having as much of a private moment as they could.

"You trying to scare the crap out me?" she asked him sitting back in her chair, "I could kick your ass."

He chuckled slightly much to her annoyance. "You can try that later without the oxygen mask on your face okay?" She shoved at his shoulder at his comment. "I'm sorry I freaked you out," he told laying a comforting hand on her thigh. "It was crazy. I couldn't exactly text you."

She nodded and took another deep breath with the oxygen mask. The tightness in chest was gone and she finally felt like she could catch her breath. Kelly was unhurt and she would have to get used to him being in harms way. It was a new concept for her, a relationship where the two of them both had jobs that put them in the path of danger constantly. She would have embrace the change.

Chief Boden approached the group. "Everyone will be going home. Get rested up. We've called in first watch to take over. I'll see you on next shift."

Kelly helped her stand up and she walked with him through the hospital and towards the front door.

"Do you have to go back to the 21st?" he asked as they approached the Squad Truck. Everyone was going to do their best to pile into the one operating fire truck and the Chief's battalion truck to return to 51.

"Yeah. I should finish my shift. Explain to everyone why I ran out."

"You goof," he told her with a smile. "I'm okay."

"I know you are but I was worried about you."

Kelly gently cupped her cheek and gave her a tender kiss. "Well, maybe we need to get away for a few days. Quick trip to Vegas to unwind and not worry about anything other than gambling and alcohol?"

Erin brightened at the thought and nodded at his suggestion. It would be nice to be void of all the responsibilities that plagued them in Chicago.

"Let's do it. I'll look at my schedule."

"Will you come over after work?"

"You couldn't stop me if you tried."

He placed a final kiss on her forehead before he hopped into the passenger seat of the fire truck. She watched the truck drive into the distance before she went to her own car to return to the police station.


	4. Chapter 4

**Author's Notes**: I loved all your feedback for the last chapter and I think it seriously made me write faster! I absolutely adore this couple and I dislike the writers for not exploring them further. Here is the next chapter. It takes place between the episodes of "Apologies Are Dangerous" for Chicago Fire and "The Weigh Station" for Chicago P.D.

More to come!

_Chapter Four_

The knock on her apartment door had her jogging to open it. Kelly stood with bag from Lito's Empanadas, which he promptly handed over to her. Erin ushered him into her apartment before closing the door and pushing him up against it, letting the food drop gently to the floor.

Having not been able to simply sink into him at the hospital and have that physical reassurance that he was okay because they had been in front of his co-workers had been difficult for her. Now that they were alone, it gave her the permission to do what she had wanted to hours earlier. Erin fisted the front of his shirt and pulled him down to kiss her. And kissing Kelly Severide was so much better than thinking of it or even dreaming of it.

Her daydreams couldn't compare to how his lips felt on hers or the way one of his hands weaved into her hair, sending a shiver down her spine. She nipped at his bottom lip and she could feel his lips curve into smirk at the action. Erin had to stop herself before things could go any further. Releasing his shirt, she looked up at him with a small smile.

"Hi," she said to him and he looked down at her with a big smile on his face.

She couldn't put into words how relieved she was that after the day's events that he was in one piece. Erin had gone many years without someone by her side other than Hank. It scared her that she had become so unguarded around this man.

"Best greeting that I've gotten in awhile."

She picked up the bag from Lito's and took his hand to lead him into the kitchen. They unpacked the food at the countertop before heading into her living room to sit on the floor and eat at the coffee table. Erin turned on the television for background noise as they both dug into the Colombian food that Kelly had procured.

"How are you feeling since earlier?" he asked and she could feel his concerned gaze on her.

"Complete one-eighty. I've never had an anxiety attack in my life so I'm not sure where it came from today." A voice in the back of her head told her it was because she was in no way ready to lose him but she quickly silenced it by moving the conversation away from her. "How's Mouch?" she asked, concerned for one of his co-workers.

"The doctor has him in an eye patch but everything should be okay once he heals up. I'm more concerned about Molina though."

Erin had gotten an update from Sergeant Platt later in her shift. Jason Molina was the driver of truck 66 and he was unresponsive with extensive blood loss at the scene. Although he had made it through his first of most likely multiple surgeries, it was going to be touch and go until he woke up.

"We don't have easy jobs Kelly. We put ourselves in the path of danger and just have to thank whatever higher power that we've gotten through another day."

He nodded and she could sense that the mood had really shifted since he had arrived. Erin wasn't sure if the timing was right but she had planned on answering his giving her a drawer at his apartment with a gesture of her own.

"Hey," Erin said and pulled on the cuff of his jeans, which made him look up at her. She could tell just by looking in his blue eyes that his mention of Molina had immediately taken him back to warehouse fire. "I'm no good at all the relationship stuff but I wanted to give you this."

She reached into the back pocket of her jeans and pulled out the additional key that she had had made and handed it to him.

"I would have to do some serious cleaning to give you a drawer in this place so I figured that this was the next best thing."

He looked at the item in surprise before he took her hand and kissed it.

"Thank you," Kelly said sincerely and Erin knew that despite the heavy topic that had preceded the key, it had had the impact that she intended. It meant that the two of them were taking another serious step in their relationship.

Kelly took the time to add her key to his key ring and it made her heart skip a beat. She picked at what was left of her empanada and told him that her mom had emailed her again about the wedding and he immediately looked up at her.

"Are you going to go?" he asked

She shrugged her shoulders, which was the only answer that she could give. Erin wasn't sure what she wanted to do. On the one hand, she certainly didn't forgive Bunny for the childhood that she had had and the things that she had been exposed to. But on the other, if she ever wanted to have a grown up relationship with her mother not attending her wedding was not a great start.

"Battle of the brain versus heart," she told him honestly. "I can't seem to land on a decision. My brain just keeps thinking about this time right before Hank took me in." Erin looked up at him, but couldn't stare into his intent blue eyes or else she knew that she would lose her nerve. "My mom showed back up after having been gone for a few months and she was in withdrawal real bad. I borrowed $200 from Hank to get a fix right before I went to school the next day. But right when she injected it, she puked all over me. The city had shut the water off by then, so I couldn't take a shower and I went to school like that, just reeking of booze and vomit. My teacher pulled me aside 'cause she thought that I had a drinking problem and I copped to it to protect my mom."

"That was brave, particularly for a 15 year old."

"Brave," she responded with a snort. "I had to spend a month in detention and have weekly visits with the guidance counselor until I moved in with Hank."

"I'd probably be in the same spot if I was in your shoes. Whatever you decide, I'm behind you. If you choose not to go, we can unwind after your shift tomorrow, watch bad relativity television and overload on carbs."

Kelly leaned in to kiss her before he got up to clean up some of the mess that they had made, Erin close behind him with the two empty beer bottles. He put the dishes in the sink, which gave her the opportunity to wrap her arms around his torso.

"I'm in this Kelly."

What she left unsaid was that Erin could most certainly see herself starting to fall in love with him. And it was scary as hell.

* * *

Erin stood awkwardly against the brick wall in the catering hall. There were many people at the reception but none of them that she knew. She assumed that most of them were Johnny's family and friends, unless Bunny had planned on inviting her sponsor to partake in the champagne toast. She saw her mother and Johnny approach her and she pushed off the wall to wish them well.

"Hey sweetie," Bunny said, all smiles as she let go of Johnny's hand and embraced her in a stiff embrace.

"Hi, mom," she greeted.

"Thanks for coming, Erin, " Johnny told her and gave her a hug as well.

"Congratulations," Erin told the two of them and she genuinely meant it. If her mother actually loved Johnny like she claimed to, she couldn't wish them malice.

"Thank you. Listen, I was thinking um, every weekend, your mother and I, - we have these barbecues. It's just friends and the kids, anyone who can stop by really, and I was wondering if maybe you could come by sometime."

Erin was not only shocked by the words that were coming out of Johnny's mouth but by the absolute uncomfortable look that fell onto her mother's face as her new step-father took a stab at beginning a relationship with her.

"Oh, honey, there's Lisa. She gave us that salad plate. I really want to thank her for it." Johnny gave her a surprised look but agreed to go speak to her. "Yeah, of course."

"We'll be just a second."

"Go enjoy your big day," Erin said. She felt slightly bitter. After being asked multiple times to attend the wedding, she was here and now she was being left for Lisa and a salad plate.

"Thank you, honey," her mother replied with a tight smile.

She felt a hand on the small of her back and she looked up to see Kelly in a suit and tie. Her stomach felt a mess of butterflies at the sight of him suddenly at her side. His appearance stopped the newly married couple in their tracks.

"Who's this?" Bunny questioned with a critical eye and surprised lilt in her voice. Erin wanted to roll her eyes at the renewed interest in talking to her but stopped herself from doing so.

"This is Kelly Severide, my boyfriend."

Her mother looked shocked at the introduction and part of her felt smug at the reaction that she had received.

"Kelly, good to meet you," Johnny said shaking his hand. "What do you do?"

"I'm CFD, rescue squad at house 51."

"Lieutenant," Erin corrected an. She wasn't going to let that fact escape this conversation. She was damn proud of her man and wanted to show him off particularly since her mother had once again proven her right with an evident brush off.

"Yes, lieutenant," he agreed with a grin that made his eyes crinkle. "Congratulations to you both."

"Thank you Kelly. Hopefully we'll be able to catch up with the two of you after the honeymoon," Johnny said and Kelly nodded and watched the newly married couple disappear into the crowd.

The DJ played the opening strains to 'Wonderwall' and without a question he pulled her onto the small dance floor that had been set up. She grinned up at him as they began to sway amidst a few other couples on the floor.

"You surprised me. What are you doing here?"

"I had a feeling that you were going to show up here after you said that she had emailed you about it. I called Antonio and he knew enough to point me in the right direction. I just didn't want you to do this alone."

"Had I known you were coming I would have picked something a little nicer from my closet."

"No need. You look gorgeous."

"You don't look so bad yourself."

She laid her head on his shoulder and Erin felt him pull her closer to him. She couldn't think of anywhere else that she would want to be in that moment other than his arms.

"I checked my schedule at work," he said, "Looks like we could make the Vegas thing work two weekends from now. Think you can still swing it?"

"I think it's a definite possibility," Erin catching his eye. "But you and me alone in Vegas sounds like trouble."

He tipped his head back and laughed before he dipped her. The sound flowed over her like warm water and she looked up at him with wonder.

"I guess I'll just have to avoid trouble in preparation for the trip," Kelly informed her and pulled her up so that he could kiss her.

But avoiding trouble was probably easier said than done for Kelly Severide.

* * *

Kelly knew he was in deep shit when he saw that the two cops that responded to the call were the patrolmen often assigned to Intelligence with Erin. After he knew that the woman was being cared for and gave his statement to homicide, he approached Kim Burgess.

"Can you not involve Erin in this please?"

She grimaced at his request. "I won't say anything but I can't guarantee what he will do."

Kelly didn't have a chance to question what she meant by that before Hank Voight all but grabbed him by the scruff of his neck. The alcohol in his system slowed his defenses significantly and so he didn't struggle. Voight pushed him against his SUV.

"The only reason that I'm not hitting you right now is because you already look like he took quite a beating," the sergeant told him. The anger that radiated off the Intelligence team lead was palpable but it didn't stop Kelly from responding sarcastically. He wanted to crash into bed at the moment and instead he was getting lectured in the early morning hours.

"Thanks I guess?"

"Don't be a smart ass. You know that Erin is like a daughter to me and I can't have you dragging her down to the place that she worked so hard to get away from."

"I don't want to…"

"Stop talking. You may not think that you are doing that but you are. A casual beer here and there is fine but living your life at the bottom of a bottle has got to stop unless you want me to get further involved than what I already am. Do we understand each other Severide?"

Kelly nodded.

"Let me give you a lift over to her apartment building. Unfortunately, I won't be helping to explain why it looks like you ran into someone's fist multiple times."

Voight was true to his word and dropped him at Erin's building. Kelly felt a little embarrassed as went into the building and used his key to enter her apartment. Moving into the living room, he saw her stand up quickly, the concern etched on her face.

"I would say you should probably see the other guy but he's on his way to jail."

"What happened?" Erin asked as she moved to the kitchen and grabbed an ice pack out of the freezer. She held it to his face with care.

"Phenomenally stupid move on my part. Took the train home from Sky Ride Tap after one too many Irish car bombs and there were these two guys shooting on the train. They shot a conductor so I did my best to help her."

The hand that held the icepack to his eye dropped to her side as she processed the information.

"So you're telling me that you got involved without backup and clearly intoxicated?" When he couldn't refute her analysis, she shoved the ice pack into his chest angrily.

"Listen, I'm sorry."

"No, this can't just be fixed with an I'm sorry. Your drinking to numb the loss of Shay is a problem."

Those words out loud felt like he had been dunked in tank of ice water.

"A problem?" he repeated.

"Yes. You know where I come from, how my mother was an alcoholic and drug addict. I like a drink or two now and again but you parking yourself at a bar for hours on end every time you're not on shift and we don't have plans is bullshit."

"You sound just like Voight."

Erin glared at him. "You need to leave. I'm can't deal with this tonight." She pulled out her phone and fired off a message, nodding to herself when the person replied. "Casey will be here in 15 minutes to take you home. You can wait in here or down by the doorman. Either way you're not staying here."

"Erin, come on…" he said, taking a step towards her to which she held up her hands to stop him.

"No, you come on Kelly. You are going to be 33 years old. When will you begin to grow up and start dealing with life like an adult?"

She left him in the kitchen and went to her bedroom, which with the slamming of the door Kelly knew that the conversation was over. With a sigh, he took the icepack and left her apartment to go meet Casey downstairs.

It didn't take long for his fellow lieutenant to pull in front of the building in his construction truck. He slid into the passenger seat, got belted in and resumed the icing of his face.

Casey pulled out into traffic only looking over at Severide once. "Do you want to talk about it?"

"Not tonight."

The next morning, he felt like shit and it was not only because of the hangover and the injuries from the fight. How he had left things with Erin made him feel lousy and he hated that he had a shift at the firehouse. Getting dressed, he went out to the kitchen and when he saw Gabby wince, he knew that the bruises on his face were quite a sight.

"That bad huh?" he asked and when Gabby answered with an ice pack and two Advil he knew it wasn't pretty.

"What happened last night?" Gabby asked giving him a cup of black coffee to wash down the pain reliever. Kelly recounted what had led him to the subway and how he had felt compelled to act on the woman's behalf.

"I just don't understand why she's mad."

"I think what you perceive as mad is actually her being scared out of her mind. She's got the whole running into a burning building thing down but you going up against a gun with no backup and your body swimming in alcohol? If Matt tried something like that he'd be in the same spot that you are."

Kelly hung his head in defeat. He knew that Gabby was telling her that Erin had a right to be mad and he needed to be patient.

"Listen she'll want to talk but she needs time. Let's get to the house for shift and in between calls, we can go check on the woman you helped. It'll make you feel better to see the good that came out of the fight rather than it just being an unwise decision."

"Unwise is probably giving me too much credit at this point."

It didn't surprise him that Dawson was right. Hearing from Kendra that the plastic wrapper from his cigar had probably saved her life was enough to remove some of the sting from his argument with Erin. Walking from the hospital to his Camaro, he took out his cell and sent Erin a message.

_I know I was stupid and I'm sorry. Please let me make it up to you._

It took a few minutes before he got her responding text.

_I need space. _

That fucking stung.


	5. Chapter 5

**Author's Notes**: For those of you that pleaded for the Linseride separation to not be long, you got your wish. Here is the next chapter of "Save You," which features their reunion. I kind of had the song _Ride_ by Chase Rice and Macy Malloy playing in my head as I wrote part of this chapter. If you haven't heard it, go have a listen. Oh and this is another M-rated chapter, so be forewarned.

The beginning of their Vegas trip is coming up next chapter so tell me what you want to see.

And finally, a shameless plug. I started another Linseride story called "I'm On Fire." Check it out, let me know your thoughts. Your feedback is always great and much appreciated.

_Chapter Five_

The first three days in which Erin separated herself from Kelly were unbearable for the female detective. She missed sending him messages during the day or having the promise of dinner out or spending time in her apartment. On day four, her focus went to saving the man that had taken her in as a member of his family when the team discovered that he had been kidnapped.

After she had almost lost her composure in front of Olinsky, she had gone to the bathroom for a quick cry and it took everything she had to not call Kelly and burden him with what she was dealing with. She knew that he would have comforted with his words and even offered to come over to the district office to be by her side. But she desperately wanted and needed him to understand that excessive drinking was not the way to heal from the loss of Shay.

The team had been lucky and had found Hank and Olive before disaster had struck. They had also taken care of Lucas Gregorio.

Hank had refused to go the hospital to get checked out since his kidnapping the day before so Erin kept a close eye on him as he cooked dinner for her, Justin and Justin's new fiancée Olive. Internally, she also battled with the offer that Steve Kot made to her the night before. She would have to address the proposal with Hank eventually. He would give her an honest opinion about what she should do.

"You're giving me a complex staring at me like that. How many times do I have to tell you I'm fine?" the gravelly voiced sergeant asked her as he tended to the food for the meal.

"I guess until I believe it."

He shook his head with a smirk and ordered her to come over to the stove and stir the gravy for the pot roast.

Justin came into the kitchen and tugged on her ponytail, which both made her miss him when he was away on base but also not miss the teasing that he enacted on her.

"Dad, I'm starving. How long until chow?"

"Go set the table. It'll be out in a minute." Erin moved over so that Hank could take the roast out of the oven and couldn't help but smile when she heard him say perfection over how the meat had turned out.

Erin put the gravy into the silver boat that had accompanied so many meals in the Voight household before bringing it to the table along with the potatoes that Hank had prepared. Olive was tossing the salad and serving some to each of them. Hank brought the roast to the table but before he began to carve, he took up his wine glass in a toast.

"To my son Justin and my future daughter Olive, congratulations on your engagement. Family and love are incredibly important so I am happy knowing that you have found both together." He paused for a moment. "My only wish is that Justin's mother could be with us to share in this moment."

Erin grabbed his free hand and gave it a squeeze. "Camille is the reason that you, Olive and your grandson came out of everything okay."

"I like that thought," Olive added, "A real guardian angel. Cheers."

Justin and Olive clinked their water glasses with the wine that Hank and Erin were having. Erin helped served potatoes while Hank carved the roast. Everyone was quiet while they dug into their meal.

"Dad told me you're dating a firefighter," Justin said to her. "You should have brought him tonight."

Her grip tightened on her fork at the mention of Kelly. Pasting a smile on her face, she looked up at Justin and lied that he was on shift.

"How's that going? What's he like?"

"Good. It's going good."

Erin could feel Hank's eyes on her and knew that the jig was up. Hank knew her too well to let her continue lying. "Kid, do you want to start telling the truth? We're your family."

She looked at Hank and his eyes held a great deal of care for her.

"We got into a fight the other night. I told him I needed some space. I haven't talked to him in a few days," she told everyone, "But if it's okay, I'd rather not talk about it at the moment."

"That's perfectly fine," Hank assured her.

The dinner conversation focused on the newly engaged couple instead, which Erin appreciated. She was able to ask questions about their move to Justin's army base and what would happen when the baby arrived.

When the meal was over, Erin got up and cleared the dishes. Doing dishes had become her task when she had moved into the Voight household. The menial task had always given her a sense of normalcy and the ability to simply concentrate on the task at hand, instead of everything else that was going on in the world.

She heard Hank come into the kitchen behind her and he picked up the dishtowel to start drying the plates that she had cleaned.

"You okay kid?"

Erin shrugged. Truthfully, she missed Kelly. She was tired of the fight. But she also wanted him to take her fears into consideration.

"I think I'm on a good advice kick at the moment so I'm going to offer some unsolicited advice. I've never seen you as content as I have than with Severide. I think whatever the fight was about, you two can fix it."

Erin turned the sink off and gave Hank a tight hug. She hoped that he was right.

* * *

After dinner, Erin decided to walk to Molly's for a drink. Part of her hoped that she would run into Kelly there just so that she could see him. But the other part of her didn't want him to be there so that she knew he was taking her seriously.

She took a seat at the bar and smiled at Gabby Dawson when she came over to serve her.

"What can I get you?" the beautiful Latina truck 81 candidate and part time bartender asked.

"Vodka soda," she responded and gratefully accepted the cocktail once it was placed in front of her.

"How are you doing?" Gabby asked her, leaning forward on the bar. Erin knew that Gabby knew what was going on between her and Kelly because her boyfriend was living in the guest room of their apartment.

"I've been better. I miss him." She stirred the straw in the glass and looked up into Gabby's warm brown eyes. "How is he?"

"He's seen better days as well. He's missing you like hell. It's like the rug has pulled out from under him."

Erin bit her lip hard at Gabby's statement. The last thing that she wanted was to make Kelly feel off kilter. He had a dangerous job to do and she needed him to focus on that instead of their disagreement. She wanted him to get some perspective about what he was doing to himself with the excessive drinking.

"At the risk of pissing you off, can I say something?" When she didn't offer up any objection, Gabby continued. "I've been thinking a lot about the fight and I realized that Shay tried to solve a lot of issues for the two of them with a trip to the bar, encouraging him to get drunk. In his own way, however weird or risky it may be, maybe he's trying to feel close to her?"

The consideration that Gabby put in front of Erin felt like a vise on her throat. Gabby saw the look in her eyes and immediately reached behind the bar to pour the two of them a shot. She downed it, the burn of the alcohol making tears form in her eyes but she appreciated the warmth that spread in her stomach.

"You love him don't you?" Gabby surmised and Erin's eyes widened in surprise. "Whoa, maybe not."

"I need another one of those," Erin said, nudging her shot glass towards her friend, which Gabby happily filled.

"Why do I feel like I just clued you into something that you didn't already realize?"

The second shot burned just as much as the first and she nodded as she recovered.

"Pretty much."

Someone shouted at Gabby for a beer and she grabbed one out of the case, twisted off the cap and put it front of the patron, processing the money that the person had paid.

"Listen, I won't say anything to him but if you love him, you have to know that it's not going to be easy. My mom always says that everyone will hurt you at some point in your life but you have to find the one person that it's worth enduring pain for. That's love."

The minute that Gabby spoke of her mother's advice, Erin knew that it applied to her and Kelly. Despite the pain, she wanted to be by his side.

"Is that how it is with you and Matt?" she asked. She needed some reassurance that she wasn't crazy about wanting what she had with Kelly.

Gabby nodded vehemently. "It's give and take. But it's still love." Gabby left Erin and went to her purse and pulled out her keys, taking the apartment key off the ring. "Go see him. Put this behind you both."

Erin picked up the key to examine it and finished her drink.

"How will you get in?"

"Don't worry about it. Go."

Erin slid off the stool and went outside to catch a cab. The cool Chicago air hit her and it made her shiver. It made her wish that she had a sweater on over her plain black t-shirt and jeans or a particular worn leather jacket draped over her shoulders that smelled of Kelly's cologne. The cab ride felt impossibly long and she was extremely generous with the tip that she gave the driver as she rushed to get out of the car.

Using Gabby's key, Erin got into the apartment with no difficulty. She had felt extremely confident on the way over but now her stomach was amass with butterflies.

"Gabby?" Matt called from the living room and Erin poked her head in to show him that in fact was not his fiancée.

"Gabby gave me her key. I'm here to see Kelly."

The blonde lieutenant grinned at her before calling out to his fellow lieutenant. "Hey Sev, can you come in here a minute?"

The squad lieutenant shuffled out to the kitchen and almost did a double take when he saw Erin standing there. She didn't give him the opportunity to ask questions and instead crossed the room to throw her arms around his neck. The feeling of being back in his arms immediately caused the tears in her eyes to spill over and she knew partially that the alcohol that she consumed was to blame. He hugged her body to him and buried his face in her neck. When she finally looked up at Kelly, she noted that Matt had left the room to give them privacy.

"I'm sorry," he breathed into her hair. "I'm so sorry."

"I am too," she responded and sees that his eyes are shining with tears as well.

"What are you sorry for?" he asked and kissed her forehead. She sighed at the feeling but it didn't stop her from responding.

"Abandoning you. I tell you that I'm all in and then I…" Erin said. She couldn't finish her sentence. She knew what a terrible person she was.

"You were right. I can't keep doing what I have been."

Kelly led her to the couch, pulled her onto his lap and buried his face in her neck. She heard him inhale. "I've missed the way that you smell. It's almost starting to fade from my pillow." He gently pushed a lock of her hair behind her ear and stared at her face. She ducked her head and blushed. Kelly was the only man to make her feel completely out of her element. But strangely, she was okay with that.

All she knew in that moment was she wanted the two of them to rid the two of them of the pain from the separation that they had experienced of the past few days. She pressed her lips passionately to his and Kelly remained stunned for a few seconds before he gave into her kisses. He knew she was still hurt and he had not expected anything but chaste, safe kisses, maybe her giving into staying the night but in place of those expectations had come raw, fervent kisses. They only broke apart when it was necessary to breathe.

"What was that?" he asked her, searching her hazel eyes. He ran his hands over her back, the thought of not currently touching her implausible.

"I love you," she whispers. Her confession is soft and raspy, and truthfully she's not even sure that he heard her. But when she finally looks him in the eye, she knows that he heard her. Her heart thundered in her chest until finally he smiled.

"I love you too, Erin."

She stood and pulled him with her, pushing up and against his body as she poured herself into another kiss. They almost performed something of a waltz out of the apartment's living room into the privacy of his bedroom refusing to break the kiss. Kelly's hands grazed the bare skin under her thin t-shirt and when she didn't stop him, he allowed his fingertips to travel up the sides of her body to graze the underside of her breasts. The intimate act caused her to whimper into his mouth. Her fingers clung to his shoulders, her nails painted her favorite color of almost black.

When both were completely out of breath, they finally broke apart. Erin closed her eyes and rested her forehead on his chest, trying to memorize the moment.

Kelly only paused for a moment or two, allowing his lungs to take a break and his lips a temporary liberation from her skin before he focused on her neck, nipping along the line of her jaw and leaving a trail of wet kisses along her collarbone. She felt like putty under his hands and chose to focus on her next breath. Any time the two of them came together, it was like fireworks – not that she was complaining.

Erin pushed at the fabric of his t-shirt desperately, wanting to feel his skin under her hands. She finally reached down and slid her hands under the cotton of his t-shirt, pulling it up as she recalled her mental map of his taut muscles.

He felt a fire all over his body from the way that Erin was touching him. Any restraint that he had had as they entered the bedroom was gone at the feeling of her hands trailing their way over his body.

He knelt down on the hardwood floor, needing more of her skin exposed to him. Kelly kissed her stomach, right below her belly button, which made her giggle. He looked up at her in surprise.

"Tickles," she said, her cheeks flushed with desire.

With a light chuckle, he focused on moving her shirt northward, over her head and down to the hardwood. Kissing his way back up, Kelly caressed every area he had been missing over the past several days. When he made his way to her lips, her hazel eyes were hazy, her lips were swollen and her hair was mess, strewn over her face and her shoulders. She looked freshly fucked even if the two of them hadn't gotten there yet. Erin gave him the smallest grin before he claimed her lips again, the very tips of his fingers begin to explore beyond the waistband of her jeans. It amazed him that he was able to focus on the task at hand because her proximity was like a drug, offering the best high in existence.

He eased out of the kiss so he could pull his own shirt off. The purple lace bra she wore scratched his now bare chest as they returned to the matter at hand, kissing each other feverishly and anticipating what would come next. His hand moved up to cup her still concealed breast while the other migrated to her waist, the softness of her skin not lost on him.

Erin wanted more than kisses and hands. She needed more. She pressed her hips against his fiercely, which eased some of the dull ache in her pelvis because he hadn't ventured there yet. Her action resulted in him pushing her against the nearest wall, their hips meeting with a small thud and groan from each of their throats. Erin could easily feel how aroused his was through his jeans and it thrilled her. A few days apart and he was easily as hungry for her as she was for him.

Erin reached down and busied herself with the fly of his jeans, eager to disrobe him completely. Their closeness made the task at hand infinitely more difficult, but neither knew how to let go of the nearness when they had spent enough time apart. It was just too much to ask the couple. Kelly marked her neck as his hands made work of her bra. She would give him hell tomorrow for doing that but it thrilled him that she would be marked as his. She hunched her shoulder blades a bit allowing the clasp to snap open.

The fabric slackened on her body immediately and she sighed, gently running her nails through his hair and over his scalp making him moan lightly in response. Standing from the hunch he had taken on to be nearer to her body, Kelly stood to full height and slid the offending fabric off of her small soft shoulders, dancing his fingertips lightly over the expanse of skin.

She inhaled sharply when the air hit her exposed breasts. He skillfully drew circles around her left breast, and she felt her breathing start to become ragged as he got closer and closer to the peak. He finally traced around her nipple, and then she cried out loudly as he took her nipple into his mouth, lightly grazing his teeth over it.

Erin seriously hoped that Casey either had the television up loud or was in possession of some noise cancelling headphones, or she wouldn't be able to look him in the face in the morning. He tweaked her other nipple roughly which sent an electric shock through her body and she felt herself get even further aroused.

Kelly was merciless in teasing her, which she deserved for her earlier action. Finally, Erin let out a throaty sigh when she managed to unhook his belt and slide his jeans down his body, and moved to his neck, kissing there, tasting his skin as his hands continued to assault her body. Hastiness overcame the both of them when she raked her teeth over his carotid and ran her fingertips dangerously along the waistband of his boxers.

He wedged a knee between her thighs and hit a place that made her world go black for a second while he smirked at her and anything but casually caressed the sides of her breasts, enjoying the feel of her flushed skin beneath his hands. She glanced up at him and saw the love and lust in his bright blue eyes.

In a second her jeans were off and her panties were floating toward the floor, pooling around her feet. She stepped out of them and kicked them aside while her hands fumbled with his boxers, pulling them down indelicately. Kelly groaned when her hands brushed against him and went to say something when she straightened herself up and pressed her fingers to his lips, shaking her head. Words were unnecessary right now and it was easier to act out their needs rather than talk about them.

Kelly kissed her fingers gently before moving towards his bedside table to retrieve a condom, but she stopped him.

"No need, we're covered," Erin told him, "On the shot."

She had gotten the shot several days before their fight and their argument hadn't given her the opportunity for them to have that discussion. All it took was one pleading look from her eyes and Kelly was lifting her leg, wrapping it around his waist and losing himself in her kiss as he entered her. The noise she made when her back collided with the wall again was enough to almost make him finish way too soon.

"Oh God," Erin moaned as she rolled her hips as he continued to move inside her. Her throat became dry and everything became fuzzy as she moved close to falling over the edge, while Kelly continued to thrust into her. The man knew how to use his body to drive her crazy. "Kelly, please," she begged and the words she managed to get out only drove him wilder, causing him to push harder and deeper.

"Fuck," he swore as he felt her clench around him and he couldn't hold out any longer. And then there it was, like a fucking freight train coming at him with blinding headlights and no brakes. One more stroke and she called out his name, tightening around him, and he let his head fall to her shoulder as she took him with her.

They rested against each other for a few moments, willing their heartbeats to regulate. He withdrew from her body slowly and they both moaned at the loss.

"You okay?" he asks, and she nods as he gently unwrapped her leg from around his hip.

"I'm perfect," she replied quietly, kissing him gently. And that was the truth.

Erin grabbed his hands and tugged him over to the bed. She was in no way done with him for the night.

* * *

Erin climbed through the layers of sleep, blinking sluggishly as the small streams of light that had snuck through the curtains hit her face. Matt and Gabby's apartment boasted a small private patio and that meant a sliding door off the living room and floor to ceiling windows in both bedrooms. It made it impossible to stay asleep. But that was fine by her as she curled further into Kelly's embrace and ran her fingertips over his chest, relishing in the stillness of the early morning.

It absolutely scared her shitless that she was in love with Kelly Severide but there was no denying it anymore. She cared about every facet of this man and his well being meant more to her than her own. Erin knew that she had enough strength to love him and help him continue to heal.

Kelly stirred next to her and she watched with great attentiveness as he leisurely woke up.

"Morning," he rasped groggily, a small smile tugging at his mouth. "How are you?" he asked, snaking his arm tighter around her waist and pulling her closer if possible.

"I'm good…happily sated," she responded, burying her face in his neck. It went unsaid that their escapades last night had tuckered the both of them out.

"Yeah. Me too," he replied as she kissed along his jaw. "I kind of wish we could just stay in bed all day today."

His comment sparked an idea and she pulled away from him despite his complaints.

"We need to stop talking about Vegas and just do it."

She got up of his bed, unconcerned with her nakedness and grabbed his laptop from where it charged in the corner of the room

"What are you doing goof?" he asked, sitting up as she came back to the bed with the computer

She went to the airline website and logged into her account, searching for flights to Las Vegas. He watched quietly, kissing her shoulder in support. Erin found a flight not long after his shift would be over on Friday and evening flight on Sunday that would them home on Monday morning.

"That won't be too much on you? You can get two days furlough?" she asked him. "I don't want a weekend away to become a burden."

He smiled broadly. "Get me a window seat and I'll sleep on the plane. And I'll talk to Boden…I'm not missing the chance to have some uninterrupted time with you."

He didn't have to tell her twice. She made another few clicks, typed in their names as the passengers and booked the flight. The smile on her face was enormous at the confirmation screen that popped up saying that the flight was booked.

She kissed his lips and ordered him to get some more sleep. "I'm going to make breakfast."


	6. Chapter 6

**Author's Notes**: We're finally getting to Vegas! I definitely took some liberties with this chapter but considering this is my Linseride take on the two shows, I think all is fair in love and war. I am in no way a gambler or a Vegas expert so I did the best that I could with the research that I did. And yes, that is me shaming the one and only Brittany Baker at the end of the chapter.

Thank you for continuing to read and giving me your thoughts! It keeps the motivation to write alive.

_Chapter Six_

Armed with a very good mood, Erin went out the apartment's kitchen and began cooking for an army. She whipped up eggs, bacon and pancakes for everyone knowing that she owed Gabby big time for last night's verbal kick in the butt. When a pot of coffee was nearly done brewing, one of the inhabitants of the master bedroom emerged.

"Something smells amazing," Matt said as he wandered into the kitchen, his blonde hair awry from his pillow. Erin placed a plate in front of him along with coffee. "This looks great. Thanks so much."

"Not a problem," Erin responded with a smile. She rarely cooked, more often than not because of work in one form or another. But Hank had taught her well and it showed when she did spend time in the kitchen.

"Everything good with you two?" he asked adding milk to his coffee and looking up at her.

"Yes, things are very okay with us." Erin noted the impish grin on Matt's face and she could feel the heat rising in her face. "Why? How much did you hear?"

"I have no clue what you're talking about. Last night, I just watched Pulp Fiction at near top volume."

Erin groaned, absolutely mortified at his obvious hearing of hers and Kelly's exploits. As much as she didn't care in the moment, she knew that details would be all over the firehouse by the end of the next shift despite any pleading with Casey.

"I'm so sorry that you had to hear that," she responded looking anywhere but Matt's face. "I'm so embarrassed."

"Embarrassed about what?" Gabby asked, ruffling her short wavy brunette hair and walking into the middle of their conversation in the kitchen.

Erin winced waiting for the ever-colorful description to come from Casey's mouth.

"Oh, just Severide and Erin humping like bunnies last night."

"Bunnies or gorillas?" Gabby corrected adding to Matt's teasing with a smirk.

"You guys are killing me," Erin responded, looking up at the ceiling dramatically. The couple looked at her with wide innocent eyes as if to ask who she was referring to. She knew that the ribbing was all in good fun. And truthfully, a little playful banter couldn't ruin her good mood.

Erin gave Gabby a prepared plate of food and the firefighter extended her appreciation before grabbing her trusty bottle of hot sauce for the eggs.

"Thank you again Gabby. You were a huge catalyst in getting me here last night. I could honestly kiss you."

Gabby didn't have the opportunity to respond as a sleepy eyed Kelly had emerged from his bedroom and wanted to know who was kissing whom.

"Oh, Gabby and I were just planning to make out," Erin teased wrapping her arms around his torso when he was close enough to her, "You good with that?"

"Hell no," he responded, with a shake of his head which drifted into a yawn. Both Matt and Gabby smirked at the obviously worn out lieutenant. Erin ignored the couple and scratched his back lightly, looking up at him with a big smile.

"There's plenty of food," she told him. His blue eyes twinkled like she hadn't seen in quite some time and it made her extremely happy. _  
_  
"Listen if you want to cook like this, you can take my key anytime," Dawson commented, her hands curled around a mug of hot coffee.

"No can do next weekend Dawson. I'm kidnapping this one for some time away," Kelly told his friend, roommate and colleague cheerfully.

"You guys going up to the cabin?" Casey questioned, munching on a piece of bacon.

"Even better – Vegas!"

Dawson coughed and immediately reached for OJ to relieve her discomfort. "Vegas? Seriously?"

Erin knew what Dawson was thinking considering the fight that the two had just gotten over. "We're thinking it's some away from the cold, some gambling and time by the pool. Not so much the booze."

The engaged couple nodded at the explanation that the detective gave. Erin didn't care what anybody else thought about the choice. There would be serious temptation in Miami or anywhere that they went.

"Just don't come back married," Casey teased.

"Keep dreaming," Erin retorted. She let go of Kelly to fix him a plate.

* * *

By the time that Erin met Kelly outside 51 to go to O'Hare, it had been a hell of a week for the two of them. She knew that the house had had a heck of save for a little boy outside of an apartment building and along with Brett, Kelly had worked to reunite the boy and his mother after the obviously broken child protective system had split them up. She had been fielding the murder of a ten year old with Ruzek and Atwater undercover in a local prison. Stressful didn't begin to cover it. Getting away couldn't have come at a better time.

She knew that Kelly would be too exhausted to get behind the wheel after getting off shift and she could think of nothing that she wanted to do less than combat with other drivers headed into the airport. So she had let Platt give her a recommendation for a town car service that she actually had no complaints with. And the look on Kelly's face was priceless. He had his duffel slung across his body and a giant smile on his face, hands out wide while walking towards the car in disbelief.

"It was Platt's doing. She got me a deal and I couldn't pass it up." She made him give her his bag and the driver put it into the trunk. Erin slid into the backseat, followed by Kelly and the driver headed towards O'Hare.

As they checked their bags at curbside, Erin couldn't help but wrap her arms around Kelly's arm and rest her head on him. She had never been the type of girl that partook in public displays of affection but with him it okay. She didn't hate that he had her changing some of her ways.

"You two are adorable," the older woman who was checking them in said. Her nametag read Joyce and Erin smiled at her. "Can I see your IDs?"

Kelly slipped his wallet out of his jeans and handed over his ID and Erin pulled her wallet out of her bag. She laid it open on the countertop to pull out her license and Joyce took note of her secondary badge that she kept on her person at all times.

"You're a police officer?" she questioned.

"Yes ma'm. Intelligence for CPD," Erin answered handing over her driver's license.

"My husband John was on the force for 30 years. Didn't want to let it up but a herniated disc forced his hand."

She tapped at some keys before giving them a smile. "Here are your tickets."

Handing them to Kelly, the firefighter's eyes doubled in size. Erin grabbed them out of his hand seeing that the top of the ticket now said first class instead of the coach that she had purchased.

"Enjoy your flight you two and thank you for what you do for our city."

Both stuttered out their thanks and they walked into the airport unsure of what had just taken place at the ticket counter.

"What just happened?" Erin asked as they navigated to security.

"A little bit of luck, which is a good omen for our time in Vegas," Kelly answered and grabbed one of the bins for his belongs to go through the x-ray machine.

They moved through security with no problem before they were whisked off to the first class waiting area. There were plush couches, fresh fruit, areas to charge mobile devices and soft jazz music piping through overhead speakers.

"So this is how the other half lives," Erin said aloud taking it all in. Kelly took her hand and gave it a squeeze as a reassurance that all was good. She wouldn't deny that it was.

They took a seat on one of the couches, watching the businessmen and women flit about through the lounge obviously not on the same timetable as the couple.

"This was a great idea," he mused, lifting her hand to kiss her knuckles.

"I wouldn't disagree. I've never been to Vegas."

Kelly looked at her in disbelief. She knew that she was amongst a small number of thirty-somethings that had never traveled to Sin City before but the opportunity had presented itself. She rarely traveled probably because it was something that she grew up without. There had been no trips to Disney World in her childhood.

"You've never been to Vegas? Vegas is just…Vegas."

With work, she still didn't travel much. She had had a weekend in Miami to herself a year or two back for some R&amp;R and when she had was in college, she had gone on ill-fated trip with Justin and his friends to Cancun. He had been obliterated the entire trip and instead of having fun in the sun, she had been like a mother hen to ensure that he didn't die in a gutter.

"What? I've been to Atlantic City. Isn't it similar? Casinos, shows, drinks..."

She could tell by the look in his eye that it was in no way similar and she was in for a rude awakening.

Their flight was called not too long after they got to the waiting area and as first class passengers, they were allowed to board the plane first. The front of the plane was a stark difference than the cramped coach cabin that they had planned to be in. First class featured large, luxurious seats that fully reclined with TVs at each place. A cheery flight attendant welcomed them aboard and offered them complimentary champagne or even a mimosa. Both opted for the latter. When their drinks arrived in real glasses, they toasted.

"To a good time," Erin offered up and he nodded, clinking the rim of her glass with his.

During the flight, Erin actually got to read part of a book, which was a novelty. She rarely had time to do anything like that at home. But every so often when there was break in a scene or chapter, she looked over to make sure that Kelly was okay, as he had drifted off to sleep not long after takeoff. She didn't blame him – for seats on a plane, they were damn comfortable.

After a smooth landing at McCarran, they grabbed their bags off the luggage claim turnstile before sliding into one of the many taxicabs anxiously awaiting another pickup from arriving flights.

"Where to?" the driver asked, starting the meter.

"Bellagio," Kelly answered.

With Erin having taken care of the flights, he had done the research on where to stay and had chosen the Bellagio as it had everything they could want - casino, spa, plenty of restaurants and a beautiful pool for daytime relaxation. Plus, with the room he had booked over the phone the couple was supposed to have a great view of the strip and the famous hotel fountains.

The gentleman at the front desk got them into their room with no issue and the couple took the elevator to the 22, to find their room and let Kelly get some additional sleep.

The room was gorgeous with a large king bed, gossamer white linens and supple looking pillows. From across the room, Erin knew that the view was incredible and it was only daytime. She couldn't imagine how it could get any better once the sun went down. She put her bag down and wrapped her arms around his neck and she felt his arms go around her back.

"Best plan ever," she told him sincerely and kissed him. Being out of Chicago for a few days, no matter the locale was crucial for the couple. Everything around them at home reminded them of lost friends, hard times and the constant danger that their jobs put them in. Being in Las Vegas felt like they were sheltered from that life if only for a little while.

She broke the kiss and leaned her forehead against his. Kelly cursed softly and she knew that although he wanted to continue things on the impressive bed, but he needed some sleep after his shift the day prior. Erin closed the blinds so that the room was dark and let him get comfortable.

"I'm sorry babe. I feel like I'm abandoning you."

Erin sat on the edge of the bed. "Hey, none of that. You need a couple hours of sleep so we can enjoy later on. I'm a big girl. I'm going to go explore, check out the spa and maybe sit by the pool." She kissed away the concerned creases in his forehead. "I'll see you later on okay?"

He cupped her cheek and kissed her again, telling her that he loved her. Despite the troubled past that she had had and the lack of role models in the relationship department, she knew that this was by far the best relationship of her adult life.

"I love you too."

He rolled over and Erin quietly moved around the room to change into her swimsuit and cover up. She wasn't letting time out in the sunshine slip by.

* * *

"Stop!" a girl squealed and ran around the edge of the pool away from her tormenter. The shriek caught Erin's attention, her body on alert at the noise but she just shook her head when she saw that it was just a couple horsing around. The girl wore a bathing suit that had "Bride" stamped on the bottom in crystals and from the way that the two very publicly displayed affection in the pool area, Erin figured that the two had just gotten hitched in one of the many chapels in Vegas.

Her phone ringing pulled her attention away from the couple and she answered, seeing Kelly's face on her screen.

"You got enough sleep already?"

"I don't know about that one but the promise of you in a bikini got me motivated."

She smiled at his shameless flirting. Although there were many things that Kelly Severide was good at, flirting and flattering her hovered near the top of the list.

"Who said anything about a bikini?" she teased before giving up her location. "I'm sitting on the side closest to the bar."

Erin saw him walk in her direction and her mouth went dry at the sight of him. Sure, him naked was the ultimate and he looked damn good in any version of his CFD uniform but in that moment, he looked sexy as sin in his black swim trunks and sunglasses.

She knew that he was appraising her swimsuit choice from behind his sunglasses and it made her blush.

"I don't know if I should just consider myself lucky that you're mine or be annoyed because I'm sure every guy here has been looking at you." She got up off her chair and wrapped her arms around his torso to soothe his envy.

"Good thing I've only got eyes for you."

She walked away from him, prepared to take a swim. She tossed a look over her shoulder and saw his reaction to her bikini's bottom half. Erin worked hard to stay in shape and she celebrated that fact with the geniuses at Victoria's Secret.

He dropped his sunglasses onto her chair and quickly followed her, making her laugh and jump in before he could grab her. Kelly wasn't far behind and pulled her into his arms in the water so they could float around together.

"Where's the other part of your bottoms? Seems like part is missing."

"It's all there," Erin responded cheekily.

It felt surreal to be in Vegas with him. They had done enough talking about the trip that the fact that it had actually happened was only just hitting her.

"I can't believe we actually got out of Chicago without some crazy work emergency stopping us."

"I know. Feels too good to be true."

There another squeal from the Vegas bride and a giant splash which informed Erin that she had finally gotten thrown into the pool by her new husband. It made Erin blurt out a question that she immediately regretted.

"Do you think about getting married?" He gave her a puzzled look, telling her that he wondered why she brought it up. She pointed at the couple that was now making out in the pool and also explained her question. "I mean thinking about what Casey said to us, don't come back married. Is that something you think about a lot?"

Erin wasn't sure what she wanted to hear from him. On the one hand, if he said that he didn't think about getting married, she knew that she would wonder if that was because of her or something else. He seemed thoughtful over her question before he finally answered her.

"I think about getting married. Being married would be phenomenal. It's the first step to starting a family. But I've come close twice, both ending in disaster."

Erin frowned. She knew he wouldn't rehash the past but she had heard enough from Gabby, Casey and Hermann to know that both Renee Whaley and Renee Royce had done a number on him. It amazed her that he remained such an amazing person despite how his past relationships had treated him.

"But despite knockouts one and two, I'm still in the match. I'm not down for the count yet."

"A sports metaphor…typical male," she joked with a little splash.

"And what do you think about marriage Detective Lindsay?"

Truthfully, growing up marriage had been on her blacklist. She saw the relationship her parents had had and it had terminated any association between love and the institution for her. But moving into Hank's house and seeing him and Camille had been the turning point. There just had been no man to ever live up to the standard. But it appeared that there was one that was beginning to show her that he could.

"I was able to see Hank and Camille together for many years and it always seemed like they kept falling deeper in love with each other all the time. If I can have a marriage like that, I'd be okay with it."

"Do you miss her?" Kelly asked.

"I do. I mean, she didn't have to agree to take me in but she did and she changed my life. Hank and Camille got me into St. Ignatius, put me on the right path. Can't imagine where I'd be today if it wasn't for the two of them."

Erin knew that was a dangerous what if to think about. She was just lucky that she didn't have to put much thought into it.

"Saving you was the best choice that Hank has ever made," Kelly said. Lowering his head, he pressed his lips to her neck.

His statement brought tears to her eyes but she willed them away before they could fall.

"You ready to get out?" he asked her and she nodded her agreement.

They went to the side of the pool and climbed out. Kelly wrapped a towel around her shoulders before grabbing his own. He gave her an adorable grin as rubbed her arms with the towel in an attempt to make the transition from water to land not too unbearable.

"So what's the plan for tonight?" She was up for anything but wanted him to make the plans as this trip had originally had been his.

"Got a reservation at Michael Mina for tonight through the concierge."

"You went to the concierge with no shirt on?" she questioned, eyebrow quirked in interrogation. It had bad enough that he had taken the elevator down to the pool shirtless. She was a jealous woman through and through. His laugh told her that it was not the case.

"Hell no, I called from the room," he told her.

She pulled on her cover up and slipped into her sandals. He took her by the hand and they went back upstairs to get ready for dinner.

* * *

It was miracle that they weren't late for their reservation thanks to the activities that had gone on in the shower. The sound of Kelly's hand smacking the tile of the shower stall and his guttural moan as she took him deeper in her throat would be burned into her brain for eternity. And the fact that he had been ready to go again after washing her from head to toe with a loofah had shocked her. It was amazing that they didn't kill themselves as the water rushed over them with Erin's legs wrapped around Kelly's waist as he nearly drilled her into the shower wall.

Clean and sated, the blissful couple went down to Michael Mina for dinner. They talked a little bit about work but mostly it about the two of them. Kelly mentioned starting to look for a place on his own, maybe a one bedroom that was in the same area as Casey and Dawson but something that was solely his. Erin mentioned that when Justin and Olive came back for another visit that she wanted him to meet him, seeing as how she had spent many years growing up with him. The food was fantastic and for Erin, the company was even better.

Whatever Erin had thought of a Vegas casino was wiped away when they stepped out onto the floor, chips in hand. Tons of people were crowded around different tables for dealer led games and the rows of slot machines were constantly lighting up and creating a great deal of sound in the large room.

"So what's your game Lieutenant?" Erin asked as they walked through the crowds.

"Craps," he said nodding to the table in front of them. "You?"

"More of a blackjack girl myself."

Cupping his face, she gave him a kiss and wished him luck.

"Bring home the bacon," Kelly told her and kissed the tip of her nose.

Erin knew that the tight red dress that she wore made her seem like an easy mark for other well-seasoned gamblers to take advantage of but Hank had taught her blackjack at 18, mostly so that she could be the dealer on nights when he had friends over for card games. He had gotten her to be so good that soon she was no longer the dealer but a bona fide player. Erin said a table with three other gentlemen and a minimum bet of $50. The dealer sent her a look of pity to which she simply smiled.

It didn't take her long to turn the game in her favor, quickly racking up a sizable take of nearly $700. When she was pleased with her success and felt that she proved herself, she winked at the dealer and took her winnings to go find Kelly.

Erin saw the girl before Kelly did - tall, blonde and with her eyes locked on Kelly as he shot the die. The jealous part of her wanted to throw her chips to the ground and challenge the girl but she knew that that sort of action would get them thrown out of the casino. She saw the serious stacks of chips that Kelly had amassed through and knew that she couldn't risk acting like an idiot.

Instead, she sidled up to her boyfriend hoping that she made it very clear to the blonde that he was hers. Claws out. Kelly shot the die and received another eight, which made the entire table go crazy, Erin included.

At the win, she leapt into his arms and he hugged her tightly. Erin knew that what he had said at the airport that morning was seemingly coming true.

"Did you see that?" he asked enthusiastically and he kissed her cheek. Seeing the girl still lingering, Erin pulled out her phone and asked her to take picture of the two of them. The girl made a face but took the picture as requested.

"Thanks so much," Erin said, with a sugary smile. She didn't have time to gloat Kelly picked her up and spun her around a little excitedly. Together they had made just under $1,600 between their respective games.

Kelly picked up his chips and hers so that they could go convert them into cash. Erin took her phone and sent the picture to Gabby and Casey, typing a quick message underneath.

_Wish you were here! - E_


	7. Chapter 7

**Author's Notes:** I've edited this chapter multiple times but I'm sure that there are still errors. I so wanted to get this out to all of you that have been reading this story and I hope that this satisfies what everyone hoped would come out of their little trip to Vegas.

_Chapter Seven_

Incessant pounding on their hotel room door the next morning was enough to make Kelly murderous. Erin knew this because of the string of curses that he let out as he pulled on his boxers and went to the door, knowing full well that there was a hang tag that read 'do not disturb.'

"Can you not see the sign?" he asked and opened the door only to immediately swallow his words upon seeing the two on the other side.

"Hey buddy," Casey said with a giant grin alongside Gabby looking equally excited.

"Surprise!" she added gleefully.

Hearing their voices at the door, Erin grabbed the nearest shirt and pulled it on to relieve her nakedness. She stayed in the bed as she wasn't sure that the shirt was long enough to warrant walking around footloose and fancy-free.

Casey and Dawson walked into the room and gave the couple the full story. Her text message the night before had started some deep conversation as well as them throwing caution to the wind. They bought tickets for the red eye and had a room booked at the Venetian within minutes of making the decision to go to Vegas for the night.

"Now we're here, ready to tackle some fun. Do you guys want to do dinner later?"

"Why don't you guys go get a round of golf in? Gabby and I can grab breakfast and lose ourselves in the spa."

Kelly sent her a look that questioning if she was sure. Erin grabbed his hand and gave it a squeeze. The weekend had now become about not only them as a couple but about their friends as well. If it were anybody other than Casey and Dawson, she would have been less okay with it.

"I'm sure! Come on, I know you bought more than one cigar last night. Enjoying one while playing 18 holes sounds pretty good I'm sure."

Kelly have her a kiss on the head and she knew that she had hit the nail on the head. Her man had a penchant for cigars and had gone looking to buy one after their successful time spent in the casino, while she had gone up to the room and ordered champagne via room service.

The girls ended up having a leisurely breakfast before heading to the spa for hot stone massages in a private outdoor cabana. Nirvana and spa had somehow become synonymous as the masseuses used the hot stones to knead pressure and stress out of their backs. As the two women lay face down on the massage tables, Gabby focused the conversation to Erin and Kelly.

"You two have stayed out of trouble this far. How was last night?"

Erin made a face remembering the talk blonde who had been on the prowl. "I had to put some blonde bimbo in her place at the craps table. She was way too interested in Kelly."

Gabby laughed. "Jeez, don't mess with you man huh? Glad I never had an interest in Severide."

"Shut up. You've been a Matt Casey girl since the moment you started at 51. Or that's how I hear it."

"If I could throw one of these stones at you, I would."

The two girls enjoyed the end of their incredible massages in silence before separating for private marine mud body treatments. When they were buffed and polished to perfect, they decided to find seats by the pool and soak up the sun while waiting for the men to return from golf.

"How's work?" Gabby asked, drawing her straw into her mouth for another sip of mojito.

She and Kelly had taken work off the table as discussion topics during their trip to Vegas so it was the first time that she had the opportunity to get someone other than Jay's take on the task force position that Steve Kot had presented her with. The drink that she had had with him the night before Vegas had only created a dozen more questions in her mind.

"Work is…interesting at the moment," Erin responded and briefly told Gabby exactly what was going on. "Both Hank and Kelly do not know so please do not say anything yet." The detective trusted the firefighter to keep the information private until she had time to divulge what was going on to her boyfriend.

"Are you going to take the job? It sounds promising."

"Promising is not all that it's cracked up to be in law enforcement. I'm still giving it some thought."

Gabby didn't have a moment to reply as the two were interrupted.

"Hey there pretty thing," a guy said and sat down at the end of Erin's lounge chair. Erin furrowed her brow at the intrusion. The guy was clearly a total tail chaser who already smelled like he had had a few cocktails. His lazy smile, backwards cap and neon colored sunglasses did nothing to edit her opinion of the guy.

"Hi," Erin said being polite before turning her attention back to Gabby and ignored his presence.

"I'm Lance," he said and took her hand to kiss, which she wrenched way before he had the opportunity to do so. The frat boy's gaggle of friends all shouted and crowed at the obvious dismissal.

"And I'm not interested," she said. Erin really hated guys that could not take a hint and this guy was clearly Mayor of that population.

"Just want to buy you another drink sweet thing. Heck, I'll even buy your friend one too."

"Gee, thanks," Gabby responded sardonically with a scowl.

Erin got up off her chair and stood up so that she could get the guy to hit the bricks. Lance took that as an invitation to do the same. He smiled at her.

"Listen, you seem nice but I have a boyfriend and she's engaged. We're not interested in drinks."

"Sweet thing, you don't have to get all hostile." Erin wasn't sure what he interpreted as hostile but she crossed her arms over her chest at his words. "I'm just trying to be cordial. Now where's this boyfriend that you mentioned because I don't see him?"

Erin rolled her eyes because she was completely over dealing with this guy. "He's playing golf with her fiancée. Or do you think I'm making that up?"

Lance must have thought it was the latter because he put his hands on the bare skin of her midriff and tried to pull her to him. For Erin, that was the absolute last straw. She shoved him away from her but wasn't quick enough to move away from him as he grabbed onto her hand and had the two of them tumbling into the pool.

Erin saw red. Coming to the surface, she wiped the chlorine water from her eyes before she grabbed Lance by the arm. She wrenched the appendage behind his back roughly and pushed him against the pool wall. Gabby looked on with a mixture of concern and pride at Erin dealing with their unwelcome visitor.

"No or not interested means one thing – no. That's not up for interpretation." She pushed him against the wall again satisfied with his groan of pain. "And next time don't piss off a cop asshole."

The audience that had gathered disappeared quickly upon Gabby helping her out of the pool.

"You okay?" Gabby asked worried.

"Pissed mostly. Any stress relief that I felt from our massage is completely gone."

She saw Kelly and Matt making their way over to them and she knew that they both had seen the tail end of the situation. Her firefighter would want to leap into action and defend her honor. She walked right up to him and put her hands on his chest in an effort to pacify him from the start.

"What happened? I saw Gabby help you out of the pool."

"Some douche who couldn't take no for an answer pulled me in."

"What the hell? You could have broken your neck," Matt stated.

"Not helping Casey." Erin looked up at Kelly. "Stay calm. I'm fine. It's over."

Unfortunately not as over as she would have liked as Lance was itching for round two. He had pulled himself out of the pool and stood soaking wet, his hat and sunglasses long gone. He now had two friends with him as backup.

"Your chick is a bitch," Lance spat, getting into Kelly's face despite Erin's attempt to keep them apart.

Erin knew that Kelly could tolerate a lot, but mistreatment of women was not something he took kindly. The squad lieutenant did not back down and instead pulled himself to his full height so that he towered over Lance. Lance's friends backed away suddenly not keen to be involved in the situation.

"Walk away," Kelly ordered. "Your ego is bruised but that doesn't mean that you can speak to her like that."

"Fine, I'll focus on you, pussy," Lance responded. He shoved at Kelly before connecting a punch to the firefighter's jaw. He didn't have much time to react before Kelly responded by tackling him into the pool. She was relieved when the two of them came to the surface, seemingly unharmed. Lance was in trouble though because Kelly now had the upper hand and had broken the kid's nose with two swift punches.

Security swarmed the pool and demanded the two men break it up. Kelly left Lance bobbing in the water, holding his bleeding, broken nose and climbed the ladder out of the water.

"Sir, you're going to have to come with us," one of the security guys said and pushed Kelly towards the exit. The other three gathered up their things and followed security into the hotel.

* * *

Erin sent Matt and Gabby to the Venetian as they hadn't been involved. She and Kelly had been waiting about ten minutes in a small room somewhere on the lower lobby when someone handed Kelly a cup of ice to hold to his jaw as well as a towel to dry off. Erin took a seat on his lap, playing nursemaid, taking the cup and gently holding it against the rapidly forming bruise.

"I'm not some wilting flower you know," she said.

Kelly snorted lightly. "I'm aware."

"But I love you Kelly Severide. Thank you for defending my honor."

She kissed his temple, not wanting to hurt his jaw any more than what it had been already that day. Kelly gave her a look that told her that he loved her too and that they were on solid ground.

Finally, a security team member came into the room and took a seat across from them. Erin move to take a seat in her own chair as he began.

"I'm sorry to make you wait but the bartender who was on shift when the fight occurred came to find us. She indicated that the other gentleman was the instigator. His group has been asked to vacate the hotel immediately. I'm sorry for any inconvenience that this has caused you during your stay at the Bellagio and we'd like to offer dinner at one of our restaurants this evening on us."

"We have two friends with us so…" Erin started.

"Dinner for four then. The concierge will handle the time and location when you call down."

With a final nod, the gentleman stood up and let them go from the small room. It didn't take them long to choose Le Cirque and make reservations with the concierge just as they had been instructed to by security.

Their luxurious dinner at the French restaurant was even sweeter when no bill arrived at the end of the meal and the foursome was simply thanked for their presence. But they were not ready for the night to end and moved the party to Hakkasan at the MGM Grand. With the music pumping and liquor flowing, the group was treated to a true Vegas club night as their trip wound down.

Kelly watched her with glittering blue eyes as she licked salt from the back of her hand before she took a body shot of tequila from between Dawson's cleavage and then sucked insistently on the lime wedge that he held between his teeth for her. Putting the used lime wedge in her shot class, she wrapped her arms around his torso and stared up at him happily. He responded by wrapping his arms around her and she felt completely content in that moment.

"If you let this girl go, I will literally kick your ass," Dawson shouted at him, making Erin shook her head with a laugh. Dawson pulled Casey away to dance, leaving the detective and squad lieutenant at the bar of the club.

"I can't believe we have to fly back tomorrow," he said, dropping a kiss on her forehead.

"We've got one last night here," Erin responded tugging on the lapels of his jacket, "Be in the moment."

He grinned and Erin automatically knew what that grin meant.

"I'll go tell them that we're leaving."

* * *

Erin stepped out of the bathroom feeling shy. She had purchased the black lace halter babydoll with Kelly in mind but didn't anticipate the nerves that came with actually putting it on and leaving the bathroom. Dressing this way had never been part of past relationships so this was a new arena. But the look on Kelly's face told her that she had nothing be timid about.

"Erin," he said quietly not able to take his eyes off her, "Come here."

Moving to where he sat on the bed, she was taken by surprise when he tugged her into his lap, his mouth on hers, kissing her fiercely. Erin was highly conscious of how good he smelled – a mixture of his cologne and what she knew to be purely Kelly. Erin breathed him in, telling herself to relax and enjoy this last night that she had with him in Vegas. He took her hand and ran his fingertips over her palm, the simple touch stoking more than a desire for his kisses.

His hands slid over her bare back and she moaned, feeling the prod of his arousal against her hip. Erin shifted, moving to straddle him, lifting the barely there skirt of the lingerie out of the way. With her knees on either side of his hips, she wrapped her arms around his broad shoulders and deepened the kiss. Kelly gripped her waist hard; hard enough that she thought she might have marks later on and she watched with hooded eyes as leaned back against the fabric headboard.

"Do you know how badly I want you right now?" he asked, his chest heaving as he tried to catch his breath.

She ran her hands down his chest, feeling the unforgiving hardness of his muscles from years of hard squad training. "I think that I have some idea," she responded huskily.

She rocked her hips against him, stroking herself with the hard length of his cock. His breath hissed out between clenched teeth.

"I need you, Kelly," Erin said breathlessly, inhaling his scent, which was richer now that he was aroused. She thought she might be even more intoxicated by him than the liquor that she had consumed, just from the enticing smell of his skin. "You drive me crazy."

He cupped her face, his lips pressing hard against hers. She loved the way he kissed her, as if he had to, as if he'd go crazy if he didn't and had nearly waited too long to do so.

When she reached into his briefs, he groaned, the sound sending goose bumps over her exposed skin. She slid both of her fists up his length, her breath catching when he quivered beneath her.

Kelly gripped her thighs, his hands sliding upward beneath the edges of her lingerie until his thumbs found the matching black lace of her thong. One of his thumbs slid beneath the edge of her panties, the pad sliding over her arousal. "I've barely touched you," he whispered, his blue eyes glittering up at her in the shadows of the hotel room.

"I can't help it. You do this to me."

"I don't want you to help it." He pushed his thumb inside her, biting his lower lip when she clenched helplessly around him. "It wouldn't be fair when I can't stop what you do to me."

His sudden playfulness made her desperate for him. Setting her hands on his shoulders for balance, Erin lifted onto her knees, rising to gain the height she needed to lower onto him. His hands fisted at her hips and she heard a snap as he tore her panties away. She smirked at him and he shrugged his shoulders at his actions. Erin knew that the desire for her was getting to him.

"Go slow," he ordered hoarsely, lifting his hips to push his briefs out of the way.

His erection brushed between her legs as he moved and she whimpered, so aching and empty, as if the orgasms he'd given her into the early morning hours the night before had only deepened her craving rather than appeased it.

The scent of their lust was heavy in the air and it awakened every cell in Erin's body. Her skin was flushed and tingling.

"God. Erin," Kelly gasped as she lowered onto him, his hands flexing restlessly on her thighs.

She closed her eyes, feeling too exposed. She wanted this intimacy with him and yet this seemed too intimate. They were eye-to-eye, only inches apart, cocooned in a small space with the rest of the Vegas world teaming with energy just floors below them.

"You're so tight," he murmured.

She took more of him, letting him slide deeper. She sucked in a deep breath, feeling exquisitely stretched. Pressing his palm flat to her lower belly, he touched her throbbing clit with the pad of his thumb and began to massage it in slow, expertly soft circles. Everything in her core tightened and clenched, taking him deeper. Opening her hazel eyes, she looked at him from under heavy eyelids. He was so gorgeous sprawled beneath her, watching her, his powerful body straining with restraint in their tender lovemaking.

"Ah, Christ," he ground out, "I'm close."

Sweat misted her skin. She knew that she was nearly there as well. Her core was rippling around him, squeezing, trembling on the verge of release.

A breathless cry escaped her before she took him inside her fully. Kelly cursed and gripped her hip with his free hand, urging her to lean backward as his chest heaved with frantic breaths. Sweat dotted his upper lip. Leaning forward, Erin slid her tongue along the sculpted curve, collecting the saltiness with a low murmur of delight. His hips churned impatiently. She lifted carefully, before he stopped her with that firm grasp on her hip.

"Slow," he warned again.

Erin lowered, taking him into her again, feeling an oddly delicious soreness as he pushed just past her limits. Their eyes locked on each other as the pleasure spread from the place where they were connected. Wild for him, she pressed her mouth to his, her fingers gripping the sweat-damp roots of his hair. She kissed him as she rocked her hips, riding the maddening circling of his thumb, feeling the orgasm building with every thrust.

"So good," she moaned, lost to him and everything that he was to her. "God, it's too good."

Using both hands, Kelly commanded the rhythm, tilting her into an angle that had his cock rubbing the tender, aching spot inside her. As she tightened and shook, Erin realized that she was going to come from that, just from the expert thrust of him inside her.

"Kelly," she sighed quietly.

The orgasm exploded through her, starting with the spasms of her core and radiating outward until she was trembling all over. He watched her fall apart, holding her gaze when Erin would've closed her eyes. Overcome by his stare, she moaned and came harder than she ever had, the intimate nature only adding to her pleasure.

"Fuck," he growled, still thrusting into her, pulling her hips down to meet his. Kelly came with a cry and he shuddered as the orgasm tore into him.

Cupping his face, Erin brushed her lips across his, comforting him as the forceful bursts of his gasping breaths struck her cheeks. He wrapped his arms around her and crushed her to him, pressing his damp face into the curve of her neck.

They stayed like that for a long time, holding each other, absorbing the aftershocks. He turned his head and kissed her softly. When they finally moved from their position, they maneuvered themselves under the covers. They lie on their sides, gazing at each other

"Wow," Erin breathed, still astonished. "I don't get tired of that."

His mouth twitched into a small grin. "Yeah."

She smiled, feeling dazed and high. Kelly brushed the damp pieces of hair off her temples, his fingertips gliding almost reverently across her face. The way he studied her made her chest hurt.

"Marry me," Kelly finally said to her.

Her mouth became incredibly dry and her forehead wrinkled in confusion at his words. It took her more than few seconds to respond to his statement. Or was it a question?

"What?" she finally asked. Her head was swimming trying to calculate how long they had actually been together. Never in her wildest dreams did she think that a proposal was in their near future.

"Right now by the look in your eyes, I can tell that you're trying to figure out how long we've been together and if this is all too soon. But I don't think that there is such a thing as moving too fast. You just jump in and either luck's on your side or it isn't." He cupped her cheek tenderly, "All I know is that I am a better person because of you and I'm not willing to let that go."

"But our conversation yesterday…" Erin started, sitting up on the bed, the anxiety over the situation not letting her lay horizontal any longer. Kelly followed suit and rubbed a hand over her back soothingly. "Don't you feel like we're going a hundred miles per hour?"

"Babe, relax," he told her and kissed her forehead in an effort to relieve her the tension there. "I'm not talking tonight. We are not going to start that chapter of our lives with an Elvis impersonator pronouncing us husband and wife."

It seemed crazy; the thought of marrying someone that she had only been dating for six months. But then again what about her life had been traditional? The answer was absolutely nothing. Her head was telling her that they need to tap on the brakes but she didn't want to. Not when it came to her and Kelly. Of course she was scared at the potential for disaster but was she willing to leap with him, charting a new step in their lives? Nothing could stop her.

Kelly looked at her expectantly waiting for her answer. She gave a little nod before she kissed him, mumbling yes against his lips a series of times. Kelly looked like a kid on Christmas at her response.

"I love you so much," he said. There were tears in his eyes but they didn't fall. She knew that it had been a hard few months for him. But they had gotten through it and she knew that just as he had her in his corner, she had him in hers.

"Now how will all those eligible suitors out there know that I'm off the market?" she teased but saw that he eyes flicked to his jacket that lay on the floor.

"What?" Erin asked, feeling herself tense, almost as if the other shoe was about to drop.

"Don't freak out," Kelly said as he shifted anxiously. His grip around her tightened. "I kind of … already took care of that part."

"What part?" she questioned, trying to get a read from his facial expression.

He stared out onto the Vegas skyline and sighed. "You're going to freak out," he said again.

"Kelly …" Erin frowned as he pulled away from her, reaching for his jacket on the floor.

His eyebrows pulled together as he made more of an effort, reaching as far as he could stretch to retrieve the discarded garment from the carpet. Once he had the jacket in hand, he was able to produce what he was looking for, his focus changed, and he watched her as he pulled a small box from where it had been stored.

Erin looked down as he balanced the small velvet square on her knees. The small item may as well have sucked all of the air from the room.

"What's that?" she asked finally.

"What does it look like?"

"Okay. Let me rephrase the question: When did you get that?"

"Last night. Cigars weren't the only thing that I stopped for."

"Kelly …"

"I just happened to see it sitting in the display window of a jewelry store on the strip, and I knew there was only one place it could belong … on your hand."

She couldn't believe that he had even thought of something. She wondered if their conversation in the pool the previous day had lit a fire.

"I didn't pressure you right?" Erin questioned, "Because our conversation yesterday…"

"Stop," he commanded. "If anything it pointed me in the right direction."

Erin stroked the box with one finger, feeling the plush velvet under her touch.

"Can I see it?" Erin asked with a smile, suddenly feeling a bit giddy. His smile matched hers, and he looked to the box.

"Open it," he urged.

She grasped the box's golden seal with both of her hands, slowly pulling the lid open. A glimmer caught her eye and she slammed it shut.

"Kelly!" she cried.

"I knew you'd freak out!" he said, cupping his hands over hers.

The pressure of his hands on top of hers made the box feel like a prickly grenade, ready to explode at moment's notice.

Erin closed her eyes and shook her head. "Are you insane? It's too much."

"I know. I know what you're thinking, but I had to. It was the One."

Her eyes popped open and instead of the anxious pair of blue eyes that she expected, he was beaming with pride. He gently peeled her hands from the box and pulled the lid open himself, pulling the ring from the tiny slit that held it in place. The sizable round diamond glittered even in the dim light, catching the moonlight and lights from the strip in every facet.

"It's … .my God, it's incredible," she whispered as he took her left hand in his.

"Can I put it on?" he asked, peering up at her.

When she nodded, he pressed his lips to her cheek gently before sliding the silver band over her knuckle, holding it in place for a moment before letting go.

"Now it's amazing."

They both stared at her hand for a moment, equally shocked at the contrast of the sizable diamond sitting atop her slender finger. The band spanned the bottom of Erin's finger before splitting in two on each side as it reached the solitaire, smaller diamonds lining each sliver of white gold.

"You could have put a down payment on a car for this," Erin said under her breath, unable to put any strength behind her voice.

"I have a car," Kelly answered automatically. "What I needed was an independent, beautiful, smart, sexy and sometimes stubborn detective to agree to be my wife…make me feel like this forever." Erin's eyes followed her hand as Kelly brought it up to his lips. "I've imagined what this would look like on your hand a hundred times since last night. Now that it's there …"

She knew exactly what he meant. Despite the short amount of time that they had been dating, this step for the two of them felt natural. It felt right.

Their family and friends back in Chicago were in for a huge surprise.


	8. Chapter 8

Author's Notes: Sorry for the delay! Real life does not care that I would prefer to be writing all the time so I'm happy to have this next chapter done for you all. I appreciate all the reviews that you written and I hope you like this one just as much.

_Chapter Eight_

Erin knew that she must have looked at her hand twenty times on the plane ride back to Chicago. Only when she saw the ring on her finger did it feel real that she, Erin Lindsay, was engaged. When the two of them had landed at O'Hare and were waiting on luggage, she pulled her phone from her jeans and asked Hank to meet her at the diner the next morning. Of anyone in her life, he deserved to know first.

To say that there were butterflies in her stomach the next morning was an understatement. Hank had given her a heard time about Kelly during the first few weeks after Shay's death but it seemed as if the Intelligence sergeant was finally warming up to him. The bell above the diner door rang, signaling her entrance and her eyes immediately found Hank sitting in his normal booth. It made Erin wonder if they had a reserved sign sitting there until he arrived each morning. Although he was focused on the menu, when she was close enough to the table he looked up and beamed at her. She stealthily hid her left hand in the pocket of her black trench coat before sitting down. The waitress immediately came over to offer her coffee, which she gratefully accepted.

"How was Vegas?" he asked, fixing his cup of coffee with milk. Hers would have to wait until she came clean.

"Cleaned up at the black jack table," she told him which got a big smile out of the Intelligence sergeant. "Kelly did well at craps, Casey and Dawson met us on Saturday. It was a great trip."

The ring on her finger felt like it was burning a hole through her coat so she slowly removed her hand from her pocket and placed it flat on the table. Hank took one look at the ring on her finger, nodded for a second before turning his attention back to the menu.

It took her all of thirty seconds to realize why he reacted that way. "You know already," she deadpanned.

"Kelly Severide is a smart guy a majority of the time. He called me in between playing the front and back nine to ask for my blessing."

"I'm going to kill him."

Hank chuckled lightly before taking her hand and giving it a squeeze.

"Kid, I'm glad that he did. It shows me that this is serious to him and not some half-cocked idea," Hank told her, "Now how 'bout some eggs before we have to get to the office?"

It was congratulations all around at the district from everyone except Jay. She took note of his set jaw and stony stare as Antonio gave her a giant hug, congratulating her on being the one to tame Severide into settling down.

"I've known him a long time. Many have tried but none of them have been you," Antonio said to her and she laughed but couldn't help but feel her partner's glare raising the hair on the back of her neck.

As Voight briefed them on their new case, she tried to push it from her mind. But that was impossible when they were alone in the car together and it was still a chilly reception.

"What's your deal?" she asked as she turned them onto a street, on their way to interview a CI. "Ever since I said I was engaged this morning, you've been like a pod person."

Jay scoffed. "I'm sorry but your place settings and engraved note of congratulations from me will come at a later date."

"Screw you," she spat in response. His words incensed her. How dare he belittle the happiness that she felt over her life finally feeling settled.

They drove in silence until she pulled to the curb and she killed the engine. She was about to get out of the car when he addressed her again.

"You told me at your reunion that we would have a shot someday. It just feels like the rug has been pulled out from under me."

He exited the car before she had a chance to respond. Erin knew that the two of them were going to need some time apart while he came to terms with how things have changed.

* * *

Kelly Severide felt great walking back into the firehouse after the weekend in Vegas. Despite having been in the moment when it had happened, he almost felt like he had to pinch himself. He was engaged to Erin and nothing could ruin the feeling of walking on air.

"He's alive!" Newhouse shouted to everyone, arranging Naomi's chocolate bars for sale on the kitchen counter

"Hey, hey! Look at you!" Hermann said to him as he walked in, "How was Vegas? Heard you and your girl lured Casey and Dawson there too."

"Vegas was great…really great actually. Uh, is Boden around?" Kelly knew that his chief deserved to know the life-changing news that he had before anyone else.

"In his office with Mouch," Hermann told him and clapped him on the back as a welcome back to the house.

Kelly took several quick strides down the hallway to the chief's office and with a quick rap on the doorframe, he questioned if the chief had a minute. He got waved in and Kelly had barely gotten over the threshold and Boden could already see the change in him.

"Vegas!" Boden cried with a big smile.

"Yeah, man! Yeah." Kelly answered as he took a seat in front of the chief's desk.

"Looks like the trip was good for you."

"Yeah, Vegas was great. You know, played a little craps, hit the pool, got some sun, and, uh, oh, yeah. I got engaged."

Both the chief's and Mouch's mouths dropped open at the news before they both realized that what the lieutenant had said was genuine. The two older members of 51 launched to their feet and gathered the squad lieutenant into an embrace of congratulations.

"How did this all happen?" the chief asked, taking a seat on the edge of his desk, "Have you and Erin been thinking about taking the next step long?"

"No, it took us both by surprise but she said yes."

The chief led him back into the kitchen, gathering the attention of everyone in the room.

"Lieutenant Severide has some news that he'd like to share with everyone."

"In addition to being very lucky at the craps table this weekend, I also had another stroke of luck. I asked Erin to marry me and she said yes." Everyone exploded into cheers and shouts, many of the house members gathering Kelly into a hug or giving him a firm handshake. Unarguably the most excited by the news were Casey and Dawson since just over 24 hours ago, the female half of that relationship had threatened to physically harm him if he ever let Erin go. It was safe to say that he had avoided that from happening. "Most of you know Erin from times when she's worked with us on cases but if you haven't met her, you'll love her."

"That is a fact," the chief agreed.

The alarm wailed before the conversation about Kelly and Erin could continue.

_Truck 81, Squad 3, Ambulance 61. Single vehicle accident. Passenger trapped._

"It's good to be back," Kelly said before jogging behind Capp to the equipment room.

* * *

Erin tousled her hair in an effort to fix it as she walked up the apron of Firehouse 51. She had been here plenty of times before but this was the first time as the fiancée of their squad lieutenant. She saw Gabby and Sylvie laughing about something behind the ambulance and she approached them.

"Well now, look who it is," Gabby greeted her with a giant smile. "Get over here." The truck candidate gathered her in a big hug of congratulations.

Erin turned to Sylvie but noticed that the girl was covered in vomit.

"Oh man," Erin said, sending the girl a sympathetic glance.

"I would totally hug you as well but this was the work of a very fun patient. I wasn't out partying or anything."

"Never crossed my mind," the detective responded to the blonde paramedic who ducked out to go shower.

"Well, let's see it," Gabby demanded and Erin promptly allowed her to inspect the ring that Kelly had put on her finger.

"Damn, Severide did really well." The diamond dazzled in the bright Chicago sunlight.

"Is he here or out on a run?" she asked.

"He's here, he'll be happy to see you."

Erin waved to her temporary partner Ruzek and the young patrolman began to pull 3 foot heroes out of the backseat of the car that was parked out of the curb.

"Want to help bring in lunch?" Erin asked, bumping her gently in the shoulder and Gabby quickly agreed.

With their arms laden with several heroes and a stack of sides, they managed to get into through the door and into the kitchen.

"Look who I found," Gabby called as she laid the tins down on the counter top and Erin did the same. Ruzek put what he was carrying down before telling Erin that he would be the car. Kelly walked in from the bunk area, smiling broadly when he saw that she was there.

"This is a nice surprise," he commented giving her a quick peck on the lips. His fingers deftly found her belt loops, using them to pull her towards him, holding her close to him.

"Well I figured you guys needed to eat so I brought lunch."

"Did you ever," Hermann said as he began loading a plate with food, the others quickly lining up behind him to grab food.

Pouch began to feel the deficit of attention and jumped on Erin's leg, wanting to meet the new arrival to the house.

"And is this the famous Pouch?" Erin asked, bending down to scratch behind her ears and allowed the four-legged team member to cover her cheeks in warm, wet kisses. "Hi beautiful girl," she cooed which only made Pouch made more excited about her attention.

"Hey! That's the official 51 seal of approval, right there," Mouch told Erin, taking a seat at the long wooden table for meal.

"Well, I am honored," Erin responded, standing up and leaning into Kelly as he wrapped an arm around her shoulders. "How's the food?"

"Damn good," Cruz answered as he shoveled macaroni salad into his mouth. "Oh, congratulations by the way."

"Thank you Cruz."

Some of the other house members followed up with their own congratulations.

"Well, I think that this happy news calls for a celebration," Hermann said and Dawson nodded in agreement, "Friday night, Molly's. And I tell you what, 15% off all the drinks in honor of the happy couple here. Erin, invite your team from the 21st."

Erin nodded her agreement and said her goodbyes as Kelly tugged her by the hand and led her out onto the apparatus floor. She could tell that her fiancé wanted her alone for a minute before she returned to district.

"How's the first day back?" she asked, gently swinging their joined hands as they headed towards the open truck door.

"Had a good save earlier, otherwise its been quiet. You?"

"We started on a MDMA ring case this morning. Ruzek and I have to go interview a CI before we head back to district."

They stopped in front of the squad truck.

"Be safe," he ordered and she did her best to ease the worry that he had for her with a kiss.

"See you tomorrow?" she asked as she backed down the firehouse apron.

"Couldn't stop me," he quickly responded with the same grin that he had had on when she arrived.

* * *

The quiet shift remained that way for 51 but Kelly didn't get the time with Erin that he had desired. The MDMA case had seen a major breakthrough, which required the focus on everyone on Intelligence to close the case. The next shift at the house had Kelly wishing for the quiet of the last. Two car accidents and an apartment stairwell collapse had gotten the shift off to a hectic start. And now, Squad 3 and Truck 81 were combatting a blaze at the house fire on Carver drive.

After he got the victim onto the ladder and sent him up to the other squad members waiting outside the cellar window, Severide looked at the box that had called the man to enter the blazing basement in the fist place.

"Aw man," he muttered and crouched down to look at the box's belongings.

His stomach dropped at the photos that were scattered on the floor, the haunted eyes of so many young victims in compromising positions staring back at him.

"Severide? Everything all right down there?" the chief called over the radio.

"Negative. I'm okay, Chief, but we need to seal this room off."

"Why, what'd you find?"

He couldn't even form the words to tell the chief what was looking at. It was too horrifying. "Make sure everybody knows nobody touches anything, and get the cops here now. Call for Erin's team."

It felt like an eternity before the fire was out and Voight's SUV rolled up to the scene. The team had focused their energy on getting the fire out so that the evidence could be preserved and were now waiting on the word to head back to the station.

Erin slid out of the passenger seat in business mode but that didn't stop Otis from making a wisecrack.

"It's like having our own version of Castle and Beckett," Otis commented about Severide and Lindsay, seeing the Intelligence detective walk up to the squad lieutenant to get the basics.

"You are such a nerd," Cruz responded and shoved his friend and roommate towards the truck.

Along with Voight, Kelly and Erin went down into the cellar with two patrolman who were responsible for photographing and tagging parts of the crime scene.

"So, what do we got? "

"This fell out of the guy's hands when he was being hauled up. I'm pretty sure this is what he came down to get." Kelly showed them to where the box had fallen open.

"Guy's hand? What guy's hand, homeowner?" Voight questioned, crouching down to investigate as he put on a latex glove.

"I don't know if he owned the place, but I'm pretty sure he owned the box."

"Where is he now?"

"My guess, halfway to Chicago Med. He was pretty banged up when they loaded him into the ambo."

"Hey, call dispatch, get a twenty on that ambulance. I want somebody with that guy when they roll into Chicago Med."

Kelly watched as Erin crouched down and picked up one of the photos. The gaunt face of the young girl was not something that he would forget any time soon. He wasn't sure how Erin was able to compartmentalize all the things that she had seen. But then again, she could probably say the same with some of the burn victims that he had pulled out of fires.

"So you didn't touch the box or its contents?"

"No."

"Didn't open it?"

"Pretty hard to do without touching it," Kelly responded acerbically.

"We just have to ask these questions for chain of evidence, Kelly," Erin said putting a hand on her fiance's arm to get him to calm down and lose the tone.

"I didn't open the box," Kelly asserted. "Those kids look pretty young."

There was no need for anyone in the room to agree with him. Everyone knew this was going to be a tough case. One of gloved patrolman lifted up the box and the photos underneath were not any better than what were scattered around it.

"Bag these up and get them over to our office," Voight directed and pulled off the black latex gloves that he had been wearing.

The sergeant moved towards the door with Erin and Kelly not far behind.

"You going to come to Molly's tomorrow night sir?"

"Don't start that sir shit with me. I'm hoping to stop by once I know that this crime scene has been processed and the photos are officially in my hands."

Tony came over the radio to tell Severide that they had another call.

"Duty calls," he told the two and ran towards the squad truck so that they could be on their way.

* * *

The next night, Erin stood in her bedroom and stared critically in the mirror that hung on the inside of her closet. She grumbled irritably as she smoothed the silky green V-neck tank top that she had chosen to wear to the bar that evening. There was already a dress that had been discarded to the floor minutes ago, feeling incredibly overdressed in that option. Glancing at the clock on her bedside table, she knew that they were supposed to have left several minutes ago.

"Babe, you almost ready?" Kelly called as he approached her bedroom and stopped inside the doorway. "Wow," he said seeing her dressed in skintight jeans, heels and the aforementioned top. He gave her an appreciative gaze up and down.

"Is this okay? I'm freaking out a little here," she asked, gesturing towards her outfit. He crossed to where she stood, inquiring why she felt that way. "They've all seen how I dress for work. I don't want to look like detective Erin Lindsay tonight. Not to celebrate our engagement."

He smiled at her mention of their engagement and wrapped his arms around her waist. "Well if my opinion counts for anything, I think you look hot."

His compliment soothed her worry considerably.

"Your opinion counts for everything," Erin whispered sincerely.

She gave herself a final once over in the mirror and nodded. She grabbed her leather jacket from the bed and took his hand. They went downstairs and got a cab, giving the address of Molly's to the driver. The city landscape of Chicago whizzed by the cab as they drove towards the bar.

Being enclosed in the taxi with him made her aware of how wonderful he smelled. She cuddled closer to him and he wrapped an arm around her shoulders. It amazed her how at peace Kelly seemed since putting the ring on her finger. Erin silently wished that she would never lose this feeling.

"Ya know if we weren't going to disappoint all our friends, then I would turn this cab around," Erin said quietly so that the driver could not overhear her.

"I'm going to hold you to that one," he said, trailing his fingers over her side. The motion made her shiver in anticipation for what would come later.

They paid the driver and got out onto the sidewalk just outside of the bar but Kelly made no move to go inside, instead looking up at the sky.

"What is it?" she asked him gently, taking his hands. She had a good feeling that he was missing Shay in that moment.

"I just wish she was here for this you know?"

Erin stretched up and kissed his jaw. "She's here. Not the way that you want, but she's taking it all in."

He nodded his understanding of what she meant but Erin knew that he needed a minute before they went inside. The large crowd gathered could already be heard on the street so Erin knew that it would get that much louder once the two of them walked through the door.

"You ready?" he finally asked and with her yes, he pulled her to the door.

He swung the heavy wooden door open and everyone turned to see who was entering. When everyone saw that it was the guests of honor, they erupted into shouts of congratulations. Erin couldn't wipe the smile off her face as the two of them walked into the bar. Hermann handed both Kelly and Erin a beer and someone from the back of the room called for a speech.

Kelly begged off but Casey wouldn't let him off that easily. "Give the crowd what they want!"

"All right, fine," Kelly said and addressed everyone that was gathered. "It goes without saying that this year has been a hard one for me. But this girl beside me has done a hell of a job at putting me back together. And she has always had Shay's stamp of approval."

Erin gave him a questioning look at that information. "For anyone who doesn't know, Shay once said to me, 'I like that girl for you. She's got swagger, that husky voice.' But she's so much more than that and I am so glad that she said yes."

"I'm glad that you gave me the opportunity to say yes," she responded.

Antonio raised his beer to them, "To Erin and Kelly." Everyone followed suit before taking a drink. With that, Atwater started to play music from the small DJ station that he had set up and everyone fell into the easy mood of the party.

Erin wasn't sure how much time had passed when Olinsky came to where she was talking to Burgess and Ruzek.

"Sorry to interrupt but Voight called. He tried your cell but you didn't pick up."

"Hermann's got my clutch behind the bar so I didn't have to hold onto it. What's up?"

"He needs you at the district. I can drop you if you need."

Erin nodded and went to go tell Kelly that she had to leave. But he didn't want her to go alone.

"I'm coming with," he said and Erin knew that it was no sense arguing. The two of them followed Olinsky out to his car and the older detective dropped them at the district.

Erin punched in her code and let the machine read her fingerprints so that she and Kelly could head up to the Intelligence office. Voight was waiting for her in his office and one look at his face told her that it wasn't good news that had required her presence.

"Sit down, both of you," Voight said softly.

The two took a seat in the chairs in front of his desk.

"The crime scene was yesterday has been processed and the photos came to me earlier after being logged into evidence. The federal kiddie porn databases, they search for the kid and for the background so that they can identify the work of different offenders, so I figured we'd do the same thing. I started going through all the photos and I found something."

The Intelligence sergeant slid a picture across his desk and Erin gingerly picked it up. Seeing the photo felt like she had been dunked into a tank of ice water.

"Oh, my God."

"What?" Kelly inquired, putting a hand Erin's back. He could see a young boy in a black wife beater, sitting on a bed and looking up at the camera.

"Kelly, that picture is of Erin's half brother, Teddy."

"When's the last time you heard from him?" Voight asked her. She put the picture back on the desk and sat back in the chair. She couldn't stand to look at it anymore.

"Ten years?" Erin could feel the tears already gathering in the back of her throat.

"You know how old he is in that photo?

"I mean, 15, maybe. He took off for New York not long after that." A tear escaped from the corner of her eye and she buried her face in her hands. She couldn't believe that a night had started with her on cloud nine was now ending like this.

Erin felt Kelly pull her into his lap and put his arms around her. She buried her face in his shoulder and let the dam break.


	9. Chapter 9

Author's Notes: I know that I've owed you all this update way sooner but work and graduate school has been kicking my butt. I'm been slowly but surely piecing this chapter together, as establishing a rhythm has been difficult as obviously not every scene in every episode impacts our couple. So I tried to pick the best ones and go from there. I can't wait to hear your thoughts.

_Chapter Nine_

Erin knew that Kelly felt helpless as she packed a bag to fly to New York. She had been incredibly vulnerable in Hank's office after receiving the news about Teddy, but on the cab ride home, she could feel her walls going up and her focus move to getting ready to take a red eye out of O'Hare.

She shoved clothes into her suitcase, aiming for basics that could easily be mixed and matched. She had no idea how long that they would be there but she was sure that finding Teddy would be easier said than done. And that wasn't the only thing on her plate. Hank had gotten on his cell right after calling Sergeant Benson at Manhattan SVU and had informed Jay that he would be going with her. Part of her was worried based on their disagreement from before the fire that things would be extremely tense, but the other part of her was relieved. Jay knew a good deal about her past. She wouldn't have been too keen in opening up that side of her to another member of the Intelligence team.

Zipping up her bag, she took a seat on her bed and took a minute to collect herself. It amazed her how easily life had gone from such an organic high of Kelly asking her to marry him and her saying yes, to now being faced with her half brother's whereabouts and the fallout from his involvement with the pedophilia ring. But truthfully she didn't want to shut Kelly out; she needed him. Rolling her suitcase outside to the living room, she found him watching the news and nursing a beer. Erin knew he was doing his best to give her the space that she both wanted and didn't at the same time.

"You ready to go?" he asked and turned off the television.

She nodded and he pulled on his worn leather jacket. "I can take a cab," she said weakly and the look that he shot her told her that that was out of the question. He took the handle of her suitcase and wheeled it out of the apartment as she locked up. They went to the elevator with her bag and waited for the car to arrive.

"I hate this," he said quietly and it made her look up at him, her face surely questioning what he meant by that. "You running off to New York and I have to work. I should be going with you. You shouldn't have to face this alone."

The elevator arrived and that gave Erin a minute to respond. Although she would love Kelly to come with her as solace, a part of her knew that she needed to do this on her own. She hadn't been the best sister over the past ten years and she knew that would come to light. She wanted to protect Kelly from that piece of her.

"I wouldn't change our time in Vegas for the world. I wish that you could come with, but you need to work. I understand that, don't think that I don't." The doors slide open and they walked into the lobby and out of the building.

"Can you promise me something? In addition to being safe?" he asked as he opened up the trunk of his car and put her bag inside. She nodded. "Call me. Unless I'm running into a fire at that exact moment, I'm taking your call. I want to help you through this no matter the outcome."

Erin dared to look up at him and the amount of love that she saw in his eyes made her want to cry. To him, she was precious. She never wanted that look to go away from him.

"I'll call you."

* * *

Erin hung back as Jay grabbed something to drink for the flight. It had been a rat race to get through security and find their gate but had done so with a few minutes to spare. She walked around the store browsing and finally found herself standing in front of the magazines. She could probably use the distraction on the flight because she couldn't look at the case file anymore than she already had. She picked up a copy of Women's Health and examined the cover. But another magazine caught her eye and she found herself gravitating towards it. The girl on the cover looked ecstatic dressed in a gorgeous white gown, a bouquet of white roses tied with a pink bow, her engagement ring prominently on display. Part of her wanted exactly that. That picture perfect happiness. But considering how terrible timing currently was, she felt guilt even thinking about a wedding. Spinning away, she took the Women's Health magazine to the clerk and shoved the idea of her in a white dress to the farthest part of her mind.

* * *

The SVU team members were professional and welcoming to her and Jay once they had arrived at their precinct. It wasn't easy for her to explain to these near strangers that Teddy was her half brother and she hadn't seen him in years. And it certainly was not easy to learn that the people responsible for Teddy's sexual exploitation were still extremely active. Her stomach turned seeing the poor boy on the screen asking to be released. She felt relief when Olivia asked the NCMEC officer to kill the feed. The video only reminded her that this organization was done with Teddy and because of that he could very well be dead. That fact meant that she needed to provide DNA to compare again the John Does at the city morgue. Jay automatically volunteered to go with her to the medical examiner's office and she was silently grateful.

Melinda Warner was incredibly warm for working in a profession that would ultimately zap the kindness out of someone from all that they saw.

"Good to meet you Detective Lindsay. I wish it were under better circumstances."

Erin nodded and bit her lip. Tears threatened to fall at every turn and she hated that. She was a tough cop and she did not need the reputation for being weepy.

Jay introduced himself and the medical examiner automatically recognized that her partner was former military.

"Yes ma'm. Army Ranger."

"Air Force," she responded and smiled at the two before asking Erin to take a seat so they could get started. "I'm going to do a cheek swab and draw some blood. Since Teddy is only a half sibling, I need more information than usual."

Erin did as she was asked and made it through the cheek swab unscathed. It was the blood draw that freaked her out as the feeling of the needle in her arm brought her back to her years hooked on drugs. It was something that no matter how hard she tried to forget, it would always live in her head. Taking a deep breath, she looked anywhere but where the doctor had set up the blood draw items. The cold swipe of the alcohol prep made her tense and she finally felt Jay's warm hand in hers, squeezing it.

"I never knew you were not into blood," he teased.

"My own, not so much. A perp, who cares," she grit out as the needle slid into her arm.

"Breathe," he told her and she did, putting herself anywhere but that small room in the ME's office.

"Almost there," Dr. Warner said as she switched vials.

"Erin," Jay said quietly and she opened her tightly closed eyes to look into his green ones. They read regret and apology. "In an effort to distract you, I want to say sorry for the other day. I was out of line. Kelly is a stand up guy and I let my pride get in the way of just being happy for you."

Dr. Warner undid the rubber tourniquet on her arm and gently removed the needle so that a gauze and bandage could be applied.

"Thanks Jay," she said and squeezed his hand. "I really didn't want to lose you from my life."

"Not gonna happen."

Even if Kelly couldn't be in New York with her, she was glad that Jay was. Mended fences meant that she had her friend and partner back.

An NYPD squad car took them back to the precinct and it seemed like from that point, things were actually progressing in the right direction. Age progressed photos of Teddy led them to the Westway Youth Center and then to someone who had actually encountered her brother since his move to New York. Rollins and Halstead actually got Jocelyn to recall a location of where Teddy may still be. Having stayed behind at the precinct to work with Detectives Tutuola and Amaro on a timeline since Teddy's departure from Chicago, she wanted to be the one to tell Sergeant Benson about the lead. There was no way in hell that she was staying behind when she could be out looking for her brother.

Knocking on the door to Benson's office, she told the sergeant that they had a lead.

"Halstead told me."

"West Village piers," Olivia stated.

"Should we go now?" Erin was itching to make even more headway as she felt as if she had been chasing her tail for the last day.

"The place doesn't really come alive until after midnight."

The look that crossed Olivia's face with her statement told Erin that it was not a place that she should want to run off to. In fact, she was sure that Olivia was trying to communicate that it was extremely rough scene.

"And that's where people go after pedophiles are done with them? "

"Some. Lindsay, this is a pretty rough scene. It's homeless teens, LGBT runaways.  
And we don't know that Teddy's there."

"I should have looked for him years ago," Erin said quietly crossing her arms and staring intently at the floor of the sergeant's office.

"How old were you when he disappeared?"

"15."

"And you were supposed to do what, exactly?"

"Not wait so long."

Olivia looked at her sympathetically and asked her to take a seat. She didn't want another person's pity. Most importantly, she wanted to find Teddy. She didn't need anyone worrying about her but she knew that everyone involved in this situation, even Kelly, was concerned about her mental and emotional state.

"Your sergeant didn't give me any details but he told me to look out for you. How are you doing with everything?"

"Truthfully? I wish I was back in Chicago and this was over. Teddy would be safe and I would have a plan for keeping him protected this time around." Erin looked over Benson's shoulder and out into the New York sunlight. "But I know that is a pipe dream."

"If we find him at the piers, I want you to have realistic expectations for what the next steps will be. But I hope that we can eventually get exactly what you are wishing for."

* * *

She should have known that that was not going to be the case. With her life and luck, it rarely was.

Erin wasn't quite sure what she was seeing as her partner and the three SVU detectives walked her half brother into the precinct. The person in front of her was not the Teddy that she remembered from what could only be classified as a chaotic childhood. The man in front of her had heavy makeup smudged across his eyelids and dark lipstick on his mouth, half a dozen ear piercings between both ears as well as kitten heels that clacked across the linoleum floor. The fishnet shirt that he wore did not bring any instant memories of Teddy Courtney to her mind. He looked like a stranger and she was sure that her face read that perception as she approached him. He regarded her with a look of cynicism and revulsion. It shattered her heart into a million pieces.

"Hey, Teddy," she greeted. In her wildest dreams, this was not the way that she thought that the two of them would be reconnected. But then again, what did she expect when she had paid more attention to Nadia and been wrapped up in Kelly Severide as of late than being remotely concerned with his whereabouts.

"I'm not Teddy anymore," he responded, his voice low and spiteful.

Erin nodded and let the SVU detectives do their job. She knew that they had arrested him with narcotics in his possession. Before they began interviewing him, he had to be processed. She watched sadly as they took a mug shot photo and re-fingerprinted him for the drugs that he had been caught with.

When they finally were able to sit down to talk, Teddy launched the first barb.

"I'm shocked. They let you be a cop?" he questioned with a laugh. "Does she know what you were?"

Erin swallowed and chose to ignore the comment, an obvious dig at the fact that she herself had been a mess in her teen years. She hadn't expected it but Benson came to her defense.

"Teddy, she came here to help you."

Teddy whipped around and shut the SVU sergeant down. "I wasn't talking to you, mama bear."

Erin could see the shock on Benson's face and she wanted to apologize for the way that he was acting but refrained as she feared that it would make him further angry. "Teddy, I really do want to help."

Teddy closed his eyes at her words. "Now? Where were you when I was 13?" His voice broke and Erin bit the inside of her cheek to stop herself from reacting emotionally. "Where was our alleged mother?"

Bunny always had messes that needed fixing however forgetting her children and leaving them to fend for themselves while she had been in search of her next fix was unforgivable. The anger that Erin felt for the woman that had given birth to her always lingered just below the surface.

"I don't know. I'm sorry. You know, she wasn't there to take care of me, either."

"Voight took care of you," he spat, obviously annoyed at that fact. "You want to help? Give me the hundred you just cost me. Let me go back to my friends."

"That's not gonna happen, Teddy. We we have got you on narcotics possession. You were holding," Benson told him.

Teddy stared at her, waiting for her to step up and help but she didn't have the authority.

"Oh, after all these years, you still have my back." He glanced at her left hand and smirked. "Taking after Mommy Dearest? Saddling ourselves to the first guy that wants to marry you? I'm sure he's a real catch."

Amaro stepped forward and got Teddy to his feet. It was time for the holding cell until he was ready to cooperate. Jay took a step towards her and she shook her head.

"I'm sorry but I just need a minute." Erin stood and blindly found the exit to the precinct. She took a seat on the steps and took a deep breath, the cold air burning her lungs and she knew it wouldn't be before long that her skin would prickle with pain. Removing her cell phone from her pocket, she instantly dialed Kelly's number wanting to hear his voice.

The phone rang twice and Erin thought that she actually caught him on his way into a fire. But he picked up and the sound of his voice felt like a balm had been applied to her aching heart.

"Hi gorgeous," he greeted and she closed her eyes at his words. If he had been by her side in that moment, she was sure that he would have gathered her in his arms and she could just exist for a moment without having to think.

"Hi," she responded softly.

"How's everything? Did you find your brother?"

"I found him…everything's so messed up Kelly. He's so different."

"He's had it rough. You knew that going in."

"I feel like I failed him."

"You cannot think that way. You're doing everything you can to help him. He can't ask for more than that."

She didn't know what else to say. Part of her just wanted him to keep talking about anything, even the goddamn Chicago Blackhawks just so that she could imagine herself being with him instead of in New York.

"Do you want me to fly out there? I'll talk to Boden, we'll figure out the furlough."

Erin shook her head vehemently, not that he could see it through the phone. "That's not necessary. Just hearing your voice is enough."

"If it's not, say the word the word and I'm there. I'll drive if I have to."

"You're going to drive the Mustang into New York City?"

The pause as he thought about the idea caused her to laugh.

"That's a great sound," he said and the tightness in her chest returned at his words. If anyone accused her Kelly of being a womanizer, they didn't know him. He took monogamy seriously and was probably the most romantic person that she'd ever been in a relationship with.

"I can't wait to get back to you," she told him.

"When you know your flight home, tell me. If I'm not on shift, I'm picking you up from the airport."

"That sounds perfect," Erin told him. She could actually relax at the thought of riding shotgun in his car, the sound of a classic rock station coming through the speakers and him with one hand on the wheel and the other entwined with hers, so that he could press kisses to knuckles every once and awhile.

The precinct door opened and she turned to see Jay standing there. He had obviously been worried at her absence.

"I gotta go," she told Kelly and ended the call by telling him that she loved him. She shoved the phone away and stood, turning to face her partner. She shrugged, the action saying more than other words in that moment. Her relationship with Kelly was her rock.

"Makes me want something like that," Jay said in earnest and Erin gave his arm a squeeze.

"SVU sergeant in pursuit of a male, white, heading southbound toward 24th!"

* * *

After they had let Teddy get some sleep and Amaro and Rollins had gotten some more information out of Jocelyn, they had been able to speak with Teddy once more and had finally gotten the breakthrough in the case that they had needed. They visited the youth center again and were now in pursuit of the security officer who had been funneling children to the Chess and Checkers Club.

She had been able to avoid the cab that was beginning to turn onto the street but was in no way able to dodge the biker. The two of them collided and she careened into the cement. It hurt like a bitch as she tried to regain the wind that was instantly knocked out of her.

"Erin!" Jay cried and moved to get to her.

"Go," she urged, waving her hand as she caught her breath. The adrenaline from the chase was still rushing through her body and she wasn't entirely sure if she was injured. She lay there for a minute, giving her body a minute to recover before she rolled onto her side just in time to see Olivia throw George to the ground and cuff him.

"Easy, we got him, we got him," Jay told her but even his words could ease the vertigo that she felt. She was brought back to the interrogation room that she had been in with Teddy and Olivia only an hour ago.

"_This isn't you," Erin said pointing at the screen capture of Teddy in front of Jocelyn from the Chess and Checkers Club years ago. "And this isn't you," she stated emphatically pointing at him. The look in his eyes told her that maybe she was getting through to him. Maybe some part of him remembered who he had been before these monsters had brought him into their fold. "I know that. You were the sweetest boy. You would never hurt anybody." _

_The light that had momentarily been there went out and instead the self-loathing part of him had returned. "But I did. I had to."_

She stood slowly but even that was not enough to combat the wave of dizziness that overcame her and she stumbled.

"Erin? You okay?" Jay asked concerned and stood in front of her, trying to get a read on the situation.

"You okay?" Olivia called as she supervised the uniformed officers in cuffing their perpetrator.

Her head hurt like no other pain she had felt in a long time and she reached up to rub at what she was sure was a wicked bump. But instead, she felt something wet and in pulling her fingers away saw that they were covered in her own blood.

She stumbled again and couldn't hold herself up, the blood loss from her head beginning to be too much.

"Erin," Jay said again as her knees gave out.

That was the last thing she heard before she passed out.

* * *

Kelly let the water run over him, the hot shower the perfect remedy for his tight muscles. The remnants of adrenaline from the helicopter call still coursed through him. The call could very well have ended up disastrous if he hadn't had Newhouse, Capp and Tony watching his back. They had literally stopped the chopper from going over the edge of the building while he had been inside it.

"Yo Severide, Chief is looking for you," Mills called outside from outside the row showers.

The few minutes of peace that he had sustained were over. Now, he had to dress quickly so that he didn't keep the chief waiting. He killed the water and wrapped a towel around his waist so that he could step out into the locker room. He dressed in his uniform quickly and went to the chief's office, his hair still damp. When he got there and saw Voight looking stoic, he knew something was up. Looking at Boden, the chief immediately cut to the chase.

"Kelly, there's been an accident in New York."

His heart stuttered at the chief's words as he knew that it went without saying that Erin was involved in the accident.

Kelly looked to Voight and he nodded in confirmation. "I have vague details, I only know that they had to take her to Lenox Hill. I'm headed to Midway now to catch a flight there. I know she would kill me if I didn't tell you so I stopped on my way."

Kelly looked helplessly at the chief. "Chief..."

"You need to go. It's understood. We'll work it out later. I'll call in relief."

"Give me two minutes," he told Voight and ran to his locker to grab the bag that he had stowed full of regular clothes. Casey walked into the locker room.

"What's going on?"

"Erin had an accident. I'm flying to New York with Voight." Despite Voight being low on the list of Casey's favorite people, Casey clapped him on the back and offered his help if he could do anything. "Thanks man, I appreciate it."

He closed his locker and bolted out of the firehouse to Voight's awaiting SUV which already had the police lights going.

"You have any problem with lights and sirens Kelly?"

"If I could have the squad truck making a lane for us, I would."

"Yeah, I feel the same way." Voight flipped on the siren and headed towards Midway.

* * *

Erin felt groggy as she finally came to. The first thing that she felt was the uncomfortable presence of the IV on her left hand. She wanted to rip it out but was sure that would keep her in this place longer. Looking around the room, she took in her surroundings. She was in a non-descript hospital room, a TV hanging off the wall and an over the bed table off to the side.

Her head hurt like a bitch. It was the last thing that she remembered before passing out and it was still the truth upon waking. She pressed the button for the nurse. She needed to get weaned off the pain medication as soon as possible. A regular old ice pack would numb the pain that she was feeling. Before the nurse came in, Kelly walked into the room, a cup of coffee in hand. She knew that the shock at seeing him was evident on her face.

"You're awake," he noted and took a seat next to her bed.

"What are you doing here?" Erin could see that he had been up for awhile, probably came straight from a shift and had not gotten much rest since he had arrived in New York.

"Voight came to the station, told me that you had an accident. What did you expect?"

"I got hit by a biker messenger, not shot. You didn't have to come all the way here."

He gingerly moved a piece of hair behind her ear. "Did you really expect me to be able to stay in Chicago and not go crazy with worry about how you were? It would have followed me into every call and I wouldn't be able to think straight."

She grabbed his hand and gave it a squeeze. The nurse came into the room and he moved to leave and give her some privacy but she stopped him from leaving

"Are you having pain?" The nurse asked and she nodded.

"I'd like to get off the painkillers as soon as possible. I'll stick to ibuprofen and ice pack if I can." She didn't want to get into her history and hoped that it was enough to simply make the request as she had.

"I'll page the doctor to get his okay and I'll be back."

"I don't want to go backwards," she said to Kelly once the nurse had left and they were alone again.

He tipped her chin up so that she was looking at him in the eye. "You don't have to explain anything to me." He placed a gentle kiss on her forehead.

They had a quiet moment before Erin realized something.

"Does this mean that Hank is here too?" The look on Kelly's face told her that that was exactly that case. "Jeez," she groaned.

Erin knew that she was going to get an earful from her former guardian about being more careful.


	10. Chapter 10

Author's Notes: This is a little shorter than what I normally post but I know I've kept you waiting for an update and didn't want to keep you waiting any longer. This will tide you over until I can get the next chapter written. A little foreshadowing at the end of this chapter towards the end of the season, which I know is going to be difficult to write but I have some ideas that I look forward to exploring. Let me know what you think!

_Chapter Ten  
_

Fighting with Hank to stay in New York had been futile. Upon his learning that she was still showing signs of a concussion, Hank had decided that she was going back to Chicago accompanied by Severide and Halstead. He was to stay behind and pick up where she had left off to help Teddy and catch the leaders of the pedophilia ring

She still had quite an ache in her head and she was looking forward to the ice pack that she knew lived in her freezer. Hank had ordered her to her couch for a few days to recuperate and although she initially hated the idea, she warmed up to it by the time that the three of them landed in Chicago. She was tired from traveling and the past couple of days' events. They got their baggage and went to the exit of the airport. She was little shocked to see Sylvie Brett standing outside her Honda Accord. Of anyone from 51, she had expected Casey or maybe even Dawson to be picking them up.

"Hey guys," she greeted with an infections smile and opened up her trunk for the luggage.

"Thanks again Brett," Kelly told her as he lifted Erin's bag into the trunk, "Casey had a construction job that he couldn't leave."

"No worries," She spun around and saw Jay. Her entire demeanor changed, instantly becoming a bit coyer. "You're the friend of the bartender right?"

Erin saw the immediate magnetism but she bit the inside of her cheek to keep from saying anything to ruin the moment.

"Detective Halstead, uh Jay," he said and formally introduced himself to the sweet paramedic.

"Sylvie Brett," she introduced and Erin could swear that she saw a hint of a blush creep into the girl's cheeks. When she was feeling better, she would have to inquire with Kelly about Sylvie's story.

* * *

"Here you go," Kelly said, handing her a cup of tea. Erin took the mug gratefully letting the warm ceramic thaw her cold skin. Even though they had only been in and out of the cold, the beginning of the Chicago winter was none too kind.

"How's your head?"

"Might need another dose of ibuprofen soon," she said and winced as she experienced another throb of pain.

"I'll get it," he said and got up to go retrieve it but she stopped him.

"No, sit," she said and he did as she told him.

"I have to tell you something that I've only shared with Hank and I told Gabby when we were in Vegas. I should have told you sooner but I just keep thinking that if things had been worse with this ancient…"

"Don't say that."

She closed her eyes at his words. Erin should have known that her words would get that kind of reaction out of him.

"Kelly…"

"No. I can't bear to think about losing you." He ran a hand through is hair despondently. "Losing you too would break me."

"I'm not going anywhere," she said fiercely and moved closer to him so that he could feel that she was still there. "But I don't want to keep anything from you and that means telling you that I was asked to join a federal task force. It means me leaving the CPD to do it but I'm thinking about it."

"You'd leave intelligence."

"I've given it some thought especially after everything with Teddy. Yes, intelligence makes a huge difference in the city, closing the book on crimes left and right. But I wonder what it would be like to actually prevent future ones. To have the power and knowledge to stop it before it even goes down."

Kelly put a hand on her knee and gave it a gentle squeeze. "Whatever you decide, I'm going to be right beside you."

Erin knew that was the truth and she let him get up to get her another dose of pain reliever.

* * *

Getting the news about the bloodbath at the hospital had nearly caused Erin to lose the toast and coffee that she had consumed that morning before immediately jetting to the district.

"Aren't you supposed to be taking it easy?" Kelly asked as he climbed the steps up into the intelligence bullpen. "Imagine my surprise when I get off shift and go to your apartment to find you long gone."

"I can't rest anymore. I've got to work."

Kelly dropped a bag of food on her desk. "Lunch for you and Halstead. I stopped when I realized where you went."

Halstead came out of the break room and Kelly shook his hand. It made life a little easier for Erin now that the two men saw each other as equals rather than enemies.

"Will you make sure she doesn't over do it today?" Kelly asked the other Intelligence detective.

"I'm sitting right here," she commented as she looked between the two men who were making decisions for her.

"Yeah, but you'll agree to anything to get me to lay off," her fiancé responded and Erin knew that she had been caught on that facet of her personality.

"Yeah man, I'll keep her in line," Jay told Kelly with a grin. Erin grumbled under her breath and stood up from her desk to walk him out to his car. As much as she had enjoyed spending time on the couch with him while she recovered, she needed to get to work and find the people responsible for all this chaos.

Kelly stopped at the front desk and slipped money into the fund for Ross McCadden. "I'm going to work a half shift tomorrow make for the other day. When will I see you?"

"This case..." Erin started

"Say no more. I'll come by the apartment tomorrow night and if you're there, great." He tilted her chin up towards him and kissed her lips. Erin could feel the warmth spread throughout her body at the feeling of his lips on hers. "Although I can promise there will be much more of that if you're there."

The boyish smirk on his face as he slid into the driver's seat of his car could only make her bite her lip and shake her head. Kelly Severide was a master manipulator and she was only human. But unfortunately, time spent between the sheets would happen only after this case was closed.

* * *

Erin liked working with Amanda Rollins. Much like her, she worked primarily with males in SVU but was just as competent as her counterparts. So when the suggestion came up that they take a drive to go visit the Whiting's, the foster family that had shipped Teddy to New York to get some more answers, she was all for it. As they drove through Irving Park, Rollins asked about Kelly.

"You did not have the blinding thing on your hand the last time we were here for a case," she stated, referring to her engagement ring.

Reflexively, Erin rubbed the side of the ring with her thumb. "Yeah, it's still pretty new."

Rollins gave her a look that said 'tell me more' and Erin felt a bit under the microscope.

"His name is Kelly Severide. He's a lieutenant with CFD rescue squad. We've only been together six months."

"The time doesn't matter. If it's right, time means nothing."

It was good to hear that someone who only knew her from a few occasions of collaboration saw things just as she did.

"It's interesting though…Amaro and I thought that Halstead was your guy for awhile." Erin balked at her statement and shot her an incredulous glance. "He speaks very highly of you. Amaro and I thought there was something there beyond work."

Erin sighed knowing that it was a common misconception. "There was potential awhile back but then I met Kelly and I was…a goner."

"How'd you meet?"

"Strangely, work. He got into a scuffle with this bad egg at the firehouse during a black out. Bad egg ended up kidnapping his sister." Rollins shot her a look. "It took a few days to find her and Kelly was a wreck until we did. Everyone who knew him said he was this womanizer, slept with anything that moved but I rarely see guys who act like that over family. He drew me in. There's a lot more to him than meets the eye."

She didn't want to go into details about Katie's kidnapping and she was glad that Rollins didn't push it. Erin pulled the car to the curb and they got out.

"You hear from Teddy?"

"Uh, not yet."

"Okay."

She had bought him the ticket and asked him to come. She sincerely hoped that he would but she couldn't guarantee that he would. But the tone that Rollins had irked her. Erin felt like she needed to defend the brother that she had basically ignored the past decade.

"He's not a player in the pedophile ring. He's a victim - that's all."

"I didn't say he was a player," Rollins replied as they walked up the steps to the front door.

Erin knocked on the door and immediately apologized. "You're right. You didn't. I'm sorry. I'm just trying to keep my head on straight."

"It's okay. Lean on me, or lean on your team. And most importantly lean on that man who flew to NY in an instant when he heard you were injured. It's the only way to do this job."

Rollins was right. Despite the difficulties that this case had posed, she had a safety net around her that she needed to trust and lean on. But she couldn't give much more thought to that as the front door to the house opened and she needed to focus on Sam Whiting who had just come to the door.

* * *

"What do you want to eat?" Erin asked Amy who had taken a seat at the counter top in her apartment and looked on with interest.

The decision to bring Amy home with her had been easy. There was no way that Erin was leaving her to the Department of Children and Family Services for the night – not after everything that the young girl had already been through. She needed the girl to believe that there was kindness and love still in the world.

Erin opened her freezer and spied the cookie dough ice cream, knowing that that was the ticket. She pulled it out and grabbed the rainbow sprinkles from the cabinet and was pleased to see that Amy had brightened even more at the idea of ice cream for dinner.

As the little girl's spoon clanked against the bottom of the bowl, the sound of a key in the apartment door made Erin curse internally. She had completely forgotten that Kelly had mentioned coming over and she hadn't had a chance to tell Kelly about Amy or vice versa. Amy appeared a bit panicked at someone coming into the apartment and Erin went to the little girl and put her arms around her.

"Sweetheart, that's my fiancé coming in. No one's coming to hurt you. You're safe here."

Despite her words, Erin could still feel her small body trembling. Kelly finally got in the door and came around the corner into the kitchen. The shock was apparent on his face at the presence of the guest.

"Amy, this is Kelly. He's a fire fighter."

Amy giggled a bit and Erin knew that the nine-year-old would not comprehend the idea of unisex names. To her, Kelly should be a girl and if it made the little girl laugh for a minute after all the horror she had experienced, then so be it.

"Hey Amy," Kelly said tenderly and stood in the same spot. He must have read Erin's mind, knowing that the little girl was skittish and couldn't be thrown into anything such as a hug.

"Amy's staying the night so we had some ice cream for dinner, then we're getting washed up and going to get some sleep.

Kelly shot her a look questioning if she wanted him to leave and Erin shook her head gently. She didn't believe that anyone was going to come for Amy but in the instance that they did, she liked her chances better with him there in addition to her Glock 22.

"Okay well then I'll set up the couch with some blankets and pillows if that's good with you girls?"

"What do you think Amy? Should we put him to work?" Erin asked, putting her hands on her hips and letting the little girl call the shots.

Amy suppressed a grin and nodded. Kelly went to the linen closet and set about making a up the couch. The little girl seemed to get deep into thought after that.

"Where are you guys going to sleep?" she asked quietly.

"Right in my room over there," Erin told her, "But I can sleep out here if you want."

Amy thought about that for a minute. "Can Kelly sleep out here too?"

"Of course," Kelly said automatically, coming to stand next to the two of them. Erin smiled at him gratefully. Kelly kissed Erin's hair and went back to the linen closet to gather some additional blankets to make a pallet on the floor.

"Let's get you washed up okay?"

Amy nodded and followed Erin into the bathroom. When the duo emerged, Amy was dressed in the smallest t-shirt that Erin owned and a pair of sweatpants that had been rolled up along the waistband and legs. The two of them found Kelly on the couch, a bowl of popcorn on the coffee table and the DVD movie of Frozen cued up.

"I called Hermann. He dropped off some of Daisy's hand-me-downs and wrestled the movie away from her for us to borrow for the night."

Erin's heart swelled at hearing that Kelly had so quickly worked to make this girl that he had met only an hour ago so comfortable.

"What do you think? You up to watch the movie with us?"

Amy nodded excitedly and took a seat on the couch. When Erin went to sit next to her, Amy put her little hands down on the cushion and shook her head.

"I want to sit next to Kelly," she said and albeit a little shocked, Erin looked to her fiancé to move down the couch.

The firefighter laughed at her expression before he did as he was instructed. Amy quickly cuddled into his side and Kelly placed a protective arm around both women. Despite not solving the case yet, Erin felt very relaxed in that moment. Kelly pushed play and the three of them got lost in the story.

It was about 2 am when Erin woke to the sound of Amy crying. She pushed up off the pallet and was going to go to the little girl when Kelly told her that he had it. He climbed up onto the couch where they had set Amy up to get some rest after the movie and pulled the girl into his lap, wrapping his arm around her and rocking her gently. From the minimal light in the room, Erin could see that Amy had her fingers hooked into Kelly's shirt and she could see that she shook slightly from whatever nightmare that she had.

"You're okay," she heard him say gently.

What felt like ages later, she watched as he attempted to lay her back down and return to the floor, but the little girl quickly tightened her hold on him. Getting a good grip on her, Kelly brought her down to the floor and let her curl into him. The two of them drifted off leaving Erin awake and realizing that for the first time in her 29 years, she could see herself having kids. But only because of the man that lay next to her.

* * *

Erin woke to the smell of coffee brewing and the sound of muffled giggles. Pushing up off the mess of blankets, Erin found Kelly in the kitchen and Amy once again at the island.

"Good morning," Erin greeted as she shuffled into the kitchen. It was rare that she and Kelly had schedules that lined up so that they could have breakfast together so this was an occasion for the books. "What you got there?" she questioned wrapping her arms around his middle, peering onto the stove to see to what he was cooking.

She think her heart melted a bit more to see that Kelly had attempted to create fun shaped pancakes which was the reason behind the young girl's laughter.

"There's coffee coming shortly. Do you want pancakes or something else?"

She kissed his arm as he flipped over a pancake that he managed to get into the shape of a heart. "Pancakes are perfect."

Erin went to the island and sat next to Amy. "I'm lucky to have you here, Amy. Kelly never cooks."

"Hey," he defended with a smirk, his blue eyes twinkling at the ribbing he was getting. He brought coffee to her and withheld it until she kissed him in apology.

She was lucky to have him there. Leaning on him just as Rollins had suggested reminded her that she was not alone.


	11. Chapter 11

Author's Notes: I suck big time for taking this long to get the next chapter up. I take full responsibility for that one. Work and school have been crazy so the time that I have to write is limited. But I hope to have another chapter of this story done soon as well as another chapter of I'm On Fire. I appreciate your continued reading and feedback!

_Chapter Eleven_

It wasn't long after breakfast was over that Bunny called and told her that Teddy had landed and to meet them at a local diner. Kelly immediately grabbed the keys to the Mustang and didn't offer her the chance to argue that he was coming along. They dropped Amy at the district so that Nadia could keep an eye on her in the team's break room. Part of her wished that Kelly would drop her at the diner and go about his day because his going with her would provide him with a close up of just how screwed up she was. Having Teddy and Bunny in the same room was not going to be a good combination. Kelly would probably ask for the ring back.

"Everything's going to work out," he said to her and took her by the hand. It was almost like he had been in her head.

They went into the diner and looked around. Erin saw Bunny and Teddy sitting at a table by the window, the tension between the two of them evident to anyone who looked on. Erin tugged on Kelly's hand to lead him in the direction of the table and the two took a seat opposite her mother and half-brother. Teddy's look had toned down some since New York, Erin was thankful for that. It was almost as if he was on his way back to normalcy.

"Hey, mom," Erin said with a tight smile.

"Hi, sweetheart. Hi Kelly," Bunny said and Kelly responded with a curt nod. Teddy eyed Kelly apprehensively.

"Hey, Teddy," Erin greeted her brother and gave his hand a squeeze from across the table.

"Hey," he responded jadedly before launching into his trusty suit of armor in the form of sarcastic wit. "Look at us. Family's all back together again. We should take a photo, right? For the holiday card?"

Erin saw her mother visibly tense at his words but knew that it was not the place and time to start building the bridge between the two of them. Instead, she focused on her brother because that was why and Kelly had gone to the diner. "T, I need some more help."

"I already told you everything I know."

"The Whitings? You remember them?"

He gave a small nod. "Yeah. Child Services parked me with them for a few months back when I was 13."

"Well, they were involved. The dad was. He was sending kids to New York."

Teddy closed his eyes and hung his head. "I don't want to deal with this anymore, Erin."

"I know. But we are close to cracking this." Erin could understand his hesitancy to keep picking at old wounds. If he was trying to find his footing, revisiting the past would do nothing to help.

"Honey…" Bunny started and went to touch Teddy's shoulder, only to have him flinch violently at her touch and words.

"I don't need to hear it from you. You don't get to drop down out of the sky and be my mom again."

"Okay." Bunny held her hands up in surrender.

"Teddy, hey," Erin said, grabbing his hand, "Hey, it's not your fault. None of what happened to you is your fault."

Kelly gave her leg a squeeze under the table. Erin couldn't express how much that little gesture of support aided her in that moment. It gave her the strength to keep pressing him, despite the wall that he had put up.

"You'd be surprised how long it takes to convince yourself of that."

"We have more suspects."

"Yeah, and I heard they either got whacked or they blew their brains out. They can't be stopped, Erin. They've been doing this for 15 years and getting away with it, putting kids like me through the meat grinder. I can't help you."

"You can. And I know you want to." Erin couldn't put it into words but all the people that she had helped in the past that had gotten closure by aiding in their case did not regret it. But getting him to see that was easier said than done.

"And what makes you so sure?"

Erin opened her mouth to answer him as he had finally given her an opening to explain why he needed to help. But Kelly beat her to it. With his arms crossed, he addressed her brother.

"Listen guy, I don't know you or what you've been through and I won't pretend to. But I know your sister and she's trying to make things right for a lot more kids than just you. Just help her out okay?"

Teddy narrowed his eyes at Kelly, appraising the firefighter that sat in front of him. Erin could feel the hairs on back of her neck stand up as she waited for one of them to break. It felt like ages before Teddy finally began to crack the smallest smile. Kelly didn't back down and only relaxed when Teddy agreed to help.

"All right, I'll help," Teddy finally said. "You're not like the others. My sister may have finally chosen wisely."

It was her turn to grab his hand and give it the squeeze of thanks that she currently couldn't put into words.

* * *

"I'm sure he'd love to come to dinner." She had told Amy that but she wasn't completely sure that that is how Kelly would actually feel.

It had been a whirlwind day. Starting off with the tense family breakfast that had resulted in Teddy coming to the district and identifying the ringleader. It turned her stomach to learn that the man at the center of everything was actually a higher up in the Department of Child and Family Services. But her day had gotten considerably better when she learned that her contact in the social work office had been able to been to place Amy with one of her favorite foster families. It was like a dream come true.

But she had barely gotten the words out about dinner to Kelly when he agreed to go to dinner at the Sturdivant home. Erin rested her forehead against his chest in relief. She was so drained from her injury and this case. A night alone with him seemed like the ticket but disappointing Amy was the last thing that she wanted to do. Showing that little girl that there were people out in the world that kept their word was more important in that moment than the two of them being alone.

"Are you sure that's what you want to be doing tonight? I know you're back on shift tomorrow."

"That little girl deserves whatever she wants. I could never say no to her."

The two of them drove over to Julie and Mike's in relative silence. Both knew that after tonight they most likely would not see Amy again unless the Sturdivants' adopted her, which was unlikely. Julie and Mike had fostered a lot of kids while Erin had been a cop – truthfully, they were some of the best people that Erin knew - but they also had their biological daughter, Zoe, to think about and she would be starting college in little more than a year. Financially, it seemed that a stable foster home would be best until the right adoptive parents came along. They pulled up to the cute suburban home that had a red door and Erin could see the well-used swing set peeking out from behind the house.

"She's going to love it here," Erin murmured and gave her fiancé a sad smile.

"She deserves it."

They got out of the car and went to the door. Julie opened up, her curly hair wild but her brown eyes bright and happy. She pulled Erin into a hug and greeted Kelly cheerfully.

"So this is the guy that has finally convinced you to settle down huh?" Julie asked appraising the firefighter with a curious gaze. Julie and Mike were college sweethearts and had had Zoe not longer after they had gotten married. Erin had spent enough time with Julie to know that the woman wanted her to find someone to share her life with.

"Yes, let's not scare him away okay?"

Julie laughed and called to her husband. Erin gave Kelly's hand a reassuring squeeze, one that he returned as they entered the home. Whatever Julie had cooking on the stove made the entire residence smell incredible.

"How's she settling in?" Kelly asked, looking up the stairs.

"She's taken to Zoe right away. They're in her room doing their nails. Chris went out and threw a football around with Mike earlier," Julie told the two of them. "This is going to be good for the both of them."

Erin felt tears prick her eyes at the news, partly from joy and partly from relief. Amy deserved joy and the Sturdivants were the first stop on that journey. Footsteps bounded down the stairs and a little body flung themselves at Kelly, which he deftly caught with a chuckle.

"You came!" Amy said brightly.

"Of course I came. You invited me didn't you?"

Amy giggled and Erin smiled. Although it would be hard to let her go, she knew that like Hank had done for her, she was doing what she needed to for Amy. The little girl and her foster brother had a real shot at happiness.

* * *

The sex club had her wound up considerably. Having seen things that were generally reserved for the bedroom so out in the open had gotten her aroused and she was glad as hell that Kelly was not on shift or else an indecent visit to Firehouse 51 might have been in order. But following her return to district, she was forced to sit and listen to Voight review the steps that they had taken to help Antonio and where they were headed. Diverting her glance between Voight and her cell phone, she sent a text a text to him and confirmed that he was at Molly's watching the Blackhawks game with Casey. All she had to do was drop the suggestive hint that she was on her way home and that she couldn't wait to see him to send the right message. After all, the two of them hadn't been together since Vegas due to her head injury. Now, she was seriously craving him.

She got into her apartment and dropped the keys on the table by the door before heading to the fridge. Pulling out a beer, she twisted off the cap and took a long pull from the amber bottle. Erin was about half way done with her beer when she finally heard the sound of Kelly's key turn in the lock. She ruffled her already wavy hair and moved towards the front of her apartment.

The look on his face was priceless. After the way that Ruzek had reacted to her dress earlier, she could have guessed that Kelly would react the same way. But she could swear that he was doing everything but banging on the table and whistling like the cartoon wolf.

"Wow," he finally got out and the boyish smirk on his lips.

Biting her lip, Erin pressed forward, moving as quick as she could in the sky-high heels that she had paired with her outfit. "Glad you approve," Erin breathed, closing the gap between the two of them. She knew that she didn't have to go into this long discussion about how she wanted him. That would come with action so she wound her arms around his neck and kissed him with as much passion as she could muster.

Within seconds, Kelly had forgotten all surprise or concern for the remnants of her injury, and was returning her kiss with the hunger that she desired. His right hand had found its way to her lower back, pressing their bodies even tighter together. She could have stayed in that position forever, kissing him forever but she wanted more.

She broke from his lips and made a trail to the right side of his chin, nipping at the soft skin she had missed over the past few weeks. Her left arm quickly slid down from around Kelly's neck, her hand resting against his defined chest for support. She could tell Kelly's hand had found its way underneath the hem of her short skirt, the warm touch of his skin against mine. Her body shivered as what little skin was fabric covered was exposed to the cooler air of the room. Erin pressed closer against him, their chests touching.

Slowly, she found her hands sliding under the lapels his black leather jacket, slipping it off his shoulders and arms with ease. Kelly broke from her lips, looking into her eyes as if asking for permission. As soon as she pressed her lips against his with urgency, he immediately understood the point she was getting across. She was healed and she needed him.

He backed her into a wall as she lifted his shirt, running her fingers along the hard planes of his stomach and chest, before she finally got frustrated enough to tug the gray material off him altogether, with a lack of care. Erin hardly had a chance to admire his toned torso, since he was quick to kiss her as he worked the zipper on her dress. It was hardly a problem for him, seeing as it was on the floor in a matter of seconds, leaving her in her heels and lace panties. The low cut neckline of her dress hadn't permitted a bra and she could tell that Kelly was appreciative about that at the moment.

"You're trying to kill me," he murmured before he began kissing her neck, then biting, tugging, sucking, and anything else to make her legs feel like jelly underneath her. Erin moaned softly, her own arms under his, her un-manicured nails scratching at his back. The two were finally unleashing the pent up hunger of the past few weeks and their actions were indicative of that.

Her legs had a mind of their own as they had lifted from the ground and wrapped themselves around Kelly' waist. This hardly slowed Kelly's progress and in fact, it increased his pace. He pressed her harder against the apartment wall, lips and tongue trailing down my neck to her chest. When his mouth surrounded her right nipple, Erin looked for support from something to keep from melting into a puddle of nothing but didn't have anything in reach to do so. Instead she tangled her hands in his hair, content in holding him in that spot worshipping her breasts. Arching her back, Kelly continued for a few more seconds before her pulled her away from the wall, his arms holding onto her securely, keeping her from floating away. The two of them managed to lay down on the floor without any damage being done, although there were a few laughs as she struggled to remove her heels and a quick hiss left her lips as her back came in contact with the cold hardwood.

His weight felt incredible against her, although she found herself reaching for him as he worked down to her stomach, mapping over her skin with his tongue. Those blue eyes never left hers, and she could swear that there was the slightest hint of a smirk on his beautiful mouth. As if he read her thoughts, Kelly moved back up her body so that he could claim her mouth. She appreciated that he wasn't treating her like a china doll.

She bit at his shoulder, legs still wrapped around his waist as she began to tug at his belt. Kelly stopped, rising above me, brushing her hand away from his buckle.

Erin propped herself up on her elbows, confused by the sudden turn of events. "What's wrong?" she whispered, afraid suddenly that he was still worried about her head injury. She swore she would call the emergency line for her neurologist if he put up a fight about her clean bill of health.

"Nothing," he smiled, sensing her worry. He was quick to kiss the tip of her nose and stand up, holding a hand out above her. "Let's just move this to the bedroom."

The sparkle in his blue eyes told her that she was going to be worn out next morning at the district. But she didn't care at all.

It was a rarity for Kelly Severide to feel so at peace with life. Work was good, Erin's family issues had been resolved and he was healthy. Erin and he were engaged but were not putting any pressure on themselves to rush down the aisle. The two of them knew that they wanted just over a year to plan everything and do it the right way. Despite Erin's protest that she was not wearing a poofy dress, he knew that in her heart of hearts that she wanted it to be a thoughtful ceremony with a good party afterwards. The two of them were now jogging along Lake Michigan, bundled appropriately from the rapidly changing season for the Windy City yet enjoying the slight burn in their lungs from the crisp air. All of a sudden Erin got a cramp in her thigh so they took a seat on the grass to grab some rest. He took her leg in his lap and massaged the muscle gently.

"Mmm, that feels great," she said and he shot her a smirk. Now being officially cleared by a neurologist meant that they were back in each other's beds as frequently as their schedules allowed.

"So Thanksgiving's next week," he said, "I'll be coming off shift in the morning but we should do something. Maybe invite Teddy?"

Erin shot him a look that read incredulity at his words.

"Families and us are complicated things. You really want to smash them together with a holiday and see what happens?" she asked, eyebrow raised.

"We're each other's family now and I just figured that maybe we'd start a new tradition."

"Hank usually hosts Thanksgiving but may we'll help with everything? Invite any stragglers that need a place to celebrate?"

Kelly stood up and helped her up. She gave her leg another stretch and the two of them got back into a light jog in the direction of her apartment.

"I think that's a great idea. Gives me to the opportunity to not go to Kenosha and deal with Benny and Beth arguing again."

Erin knew that just as her mother's abandonment and substance abuse was a sore spot for her, Benny's philandering and inability to stay in a marriage was an issue for him.

"Like you said, we're each other's family now," Erin reiterated, "When we host the holiday we can choose who we invite. Hell, we can fly to St. Kitt's and saw screw it if we want to."

Erin stopped running again which had Kelly concerned. "Is it your leg again? Maybe we should walk back?"

"No I was just thinking maybe we should start looking at places to live together. You can't keep staying at Casey and Dawson's and my place isn't big enough for us. It's another step into the future for us."

Kelly smiled broadly at the idea. He had been content for just being engaged but getting to see more of Erin and not constantly having to coordinate schedules to do so was enough to make him grab her and kiss her.

"God I love you."

And just like that the couple took another step into their future.


End file.
